YSU CROSS COUNTRY Davies starts, finishes well to earn newcomer honors

The West Branch High graduate finished second at the Horizon meet.
YOUNGSTOWN -- After her first cross country season as a sophomore at West Branch High School, Lisa Davies was worn out.
Despite posting a fourth-place finish at the Division II state finals, she wondered if all the sacrifices, time and energy spent training was worth it.
In the end, her love for running brought her back for two more successful seasons at West Branch.
Now, with that same love for running, Davies is a collegiate Division I All-Ohio Freshman of the Year and Horizon League Newcomer of the Year at Youngstown State.
"[The sacrifices] are definitely worth it now," Davies said. "My best memories from high school and life in general are from track and cross country. I would never trade not running for running."
As a three-time All-Ohioan in cross country and state champion in the 3,200-meter run at West Branch, Davies came into a program at YSU that returned the top-five runners and featured rising star Emily Schnitkey, the school-record holder in the 6-kilometer event and two-time All-Horizon League selection.
Different scenario
Entering the season, Davies thought she and Schnitkey could provide the Penguins with a powerful one-two punch, but that would not be the case. Doctors found a stress fracture in Schnitkey's leg during the summer, shoving the 5-foot-2 Davies into the leadership role as a freshman.
Instead of buckling under the pressure, Davies established herself as a leader in her first collegiate meet, finishing ninth at Penn State's Spiked Shoe Invitational on Sept. 13 with a time that was just six seconds shy of Schnitkey's record.
With her performance, she earned her first of two Horizon League Athlete-of-the-Week honors of the season.
"It was very motivating for me to have that big race first," Davies said. "I had never run a 6K before and I didn't know what my time would be like. Being a few seconds off the school record made me want to work even harder."
Three weeks later, Davies was named Division I Freshman of the Year at the All-Ohio Championship by posting a 12th-place finish while leading the team to a seventh-place finish overall, a seven-place improvement from 2002.
"Lisa did a phenomenal job this season," coach Brian Gorby said. "Her positive attitude and drive brings everyone around her up a notch. You don't see that too often, especially from a freshman."
Finishing strong
Davies continued her success at the Penn State National Cross Country Race a week later when she broke the Youngstown State 6K record with a time of 21:46.90.
Then, facing a muddy course at the Avalon South Golf Course in Howland, Davies finished second to Butler senior All-American Becky Lyne at the Horizon League Championship to earn league Newcomer-of-the-Year honors.
Lyne, a 22-year-old who has competed at the world-class level her entire career, needed the final 800 meters to pull away from Davies to win by just six seconds.
Most recently, Davies posted the second-best finish in YSU history at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional on Nov. 15 by coming in 38th - just 13 places shy of qualifying for the National Championship.
Davies said she hopes her success in cross country will help her springboard right into the indoor track season that begins next Friday.
"This cross country season gave me a lot of confidence," Davies said. "The first meet of the year, I was nervous and went out conservative, but by the end of the season I was kicking harder and I was more confident.
"As long as I'm healthy I'll work hard and hopefully set some personal-records in track while having some fun racing."