With several important larger meets coming up in the next few weeks, the women used this opportunity to practice establishing their positions and working together as a larger pack in a contest with more competitors.

“We have pre-nationals in Indiana in two weeks, which is a really big race where we see people from all over the nation,” Richardson said. “This race was definitely good experience for bigger meets like that, and it helped us get confidence for this kind of setting.”

But the Crimson squad knows that regardless of the size of the competition, it needs to focus on what it does best and to keep running strong.

“When you are in a bigger setting, the key is to block out all of the things that you can’t control,” Saretsky said. “A bigger field and a bigger crowd ultimately shouldn’t influence how you race.”

“At the end of the day, our sport is about putting one foot in front of the other,” he added.

—Staff writer Stephanie Herwatt can be reached at sherwatt@college.harvard.edu.