University of Minnesota Athletics
Bingle Previews Border Battle Dual
1/18/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
MINNEAPOLIS - University of Minnesota director of women's track & field and cross country Matt Bingle checks in with the media as the Gophers prepare for this week's dual meet against Wisconsin.
On the rivalry with Wisconsin...
Bingle: Obviously the rivalry runs deep. It runs deep for me, and we want to bring everything we can and do everything we can to win this meet. The team realizes it's important. It's a goal of ours to win the dual every year. The rivalry runs deep state-wide. A lot of the athletes on the team grew up knowing that. It's super important for us to compete well.
On competing in a head-to-head environment...
Bingle: I think it's important. We all have to learn how to compete and continue to get better at it. Anytime we can go head-to-head will help us build toward the end of the season when it's important at the Big Ten Championships. I like these kind of meets because it's all about you vs. me and who's better. There's nothing better than that. That's what I do really enjoy about this meet.
On the opportunity to have more head-to-head competition...
Bingle: The indoor season is super short, so it makes it hard to get everything done that you'd like to get done. Some schools are evolving into doing scored meets that have three or four teams. That way, it's a lot more competition. You get the best of both worlds, great competition and a scored meet. In the dual meet, if one team is a little weak in one area, there's just not enough competition. Like I said, I do enjoy the rivalry and want to try to continue this meet if it makes sense for the program.
On competing against an opponent instead of time or distance...
Bingle: Sometimes they are too focused on times and results and things like that, instead of just beating people. That's something we try to preach, focusing on execution and competing well instead of trying to throw far or run fast. We'll talk about that this weekend. I think it helps with the evolution of themselves as they mature as competitors.
On hopes for the team this week...
Bingle: Obviously we want to get better than we were last week. We'll unleash people a little more this week and try to get after some things. I don't really have any specific goals, I just want to see people improve across the board and continue to work on execution. We started school this week and their training volume is still high, so if they can go in and execute as a team and compete well, lay it on the line, that's all we can ask for as coaches.
On any surprises early in the season...
Bingle: I think some people came out pretty well with a good start last week when you look at last year and where we started then. We have some really good individuals; obviously they have to continue to get better, but people came out of the gate pretty well. It will just be interesting to see how they can continue to evolve and improve as they continue to stay focused. I was surprised with a few people. There are other people who just need to get some work done, but we're at a pretty good spot and we're relatively healthy, which is a good thing for right now.
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