An Intercollegiate Cross Country Team is Established

The intercollegiate cross country program that is known around Trinity’s campus today was officially established in the fall of 1988. The continued progress that the club team had made during the 1987-1988 school year with the help of Ken Louis and volunteer coach Olga Ortega Bellg had proved to Norris that there was a place for a competitive cross country program at Trinity University. The university administration was in agreement and passed the proposal which gave the newly sponsored team a budget and a salary for a coach (Schwabenlender, 1988). The goal set by David Apel in 1984, and carried on by Ken Louis, was finally achieved. Four years after its creation, the informal cross country club had been transformed into the Trinity University Cross Country team, an intercollegiate NCAA Division III program. 

According to an article in the September 16, 1988 issue of The Trinitonian, Ortega-Bellg continued on as the team’s coach during its first official season with varsity status. The budget that had been granted to the team would allow for up to 20 runners, however the initial squad that year consisted of only 10-12 runners who participated consistently. The team was also made up of only male runners during its first season even though the approved proposal had created both a men’s and women’s cross country program (Schwabenlender, 1988).  Although the goal of creating an intercollegiate cross country program at Trinity had been met, there was still plenty of room for development. In order to gain a larger budget, create more opportunities for the student-athletes, and become a more established program on campus the team needed to attract more interested runners and continue to grow in size.