Lawson finishes seventh at final OVC title meet

If you have been on Southeast Missouri State University's campus for the last four years, there are some things you may have become accustomed to: lots of hills, thick blossoming trees, the sight of Towers Complex from Sprigg Street and a particular woman running around Cape Girardeau. That woman is Rebekah Lawson of the Southeast cross country and track and field teams. She has grown accustomed to some things as well, like being named first-team All-Ohio Valley Conference.

Lawson finished in seventh place at the OVC championships on Nov. 1 in Oxford, Alabama.

She earned first-team All-OVC honors for the fourth year in a row with the finish.

Lawson fell in love with the sport in the ninth grade and was looking forward to track season, but it started in the spring so she needed something else to do.

That previous summer, Lawson began running one mile each day, which was a huge personal achievement for her.

In the fall, one of Lawson's high school coaches directed her to the cross country team. She wore soccer shoes during her first meet. Lawson ran three miles that day, and the rest was history.

Coming to Southeast, Lawson did not intend to run on the cross country team with the fear that she was not fast enough.

"To run cross country here, I didn't think I was good enough," Lawson said. "I was going to do triathlons and not even do sports here, and I trained really hard and obsessively over the summer, with swimming and biking and running. One of my friends went to [Washington University] and she told me to contact coach before I came to SEMO to see if I could run, and I never considered it before then so I contacted him."

Lawson's freshman year was a big surprise for her. She ran faster than she thought, but it wasn't a surprise for coach Ryan Lane who had been following Lawson during the recruiting process and saw the huge improvement she had made.

Lawson's first year, like most freshmen, was a hard adjustment. Lawson distanced herself from her teammates and was not very involved in team activities. Soon she found out how close the track and field and cross country teams are at Southeast.

Lane said that the women formed a tight-knit family. Lane mentioned that the previous coach did not make the women's team a priority, and when that coach departed the team was completely gone. Today, the women's track and cross country teams are two of the most competitive teams at Southeast.

"I think a lot of teams have issues with personality issues and stuff," Lawson said. "But we really get along well, just a good team and they're really supportive with everything."

The OVC has brought tough competition of its own for Lawson to face with the toughest coming against Eastern Kentucky's Ann Eason and Una Britton in the last few years.

Lawson said that Eason has been jogging against the OVC and is definitely her toughest competition and someone she looks forward to competing against.

The support of Lawson's friends and family has been vital to her success at Southeast. Her stepfather once drove eight hours after he got off work to surprise Lawson. Lawson had not performed well and he was there to comfort her.

Lawson, a senior, will be leaving after this year and continue on with her life, but she says she has grown much at Southeast. Lawson learned to work as a team player in a sport full of individual competition, and one thing she will take away from Southeast is learning how to work effectively with others.

Lawson had major plans for the NCAA regionals meet last Friday in Peoria, Illinois. She finished just 2.7 seconds behind Gloria Westlake at 84th overall in her last cross country outing as a Redhawk.

"I want to go as hard as I can," Lawson said. "Which is hard to do because a 5k is a sprint now. A 5k is a sprint, and the good thing about regionals is that regionals is a 6k, so I have the extra K to try to pick people off."

What Lawson will remember about Lane is how he cares for all the athletes and personalizes training and practices for every member on the team.

Lawson said Lane is the best coach she has ever had and credits his ability to take the time to explain his decisions on training and other things to his athletes. Lane has also gained a new teaching tool because he will be telling future Redhawks about what Lawson accomplished.

Lawson's teammates will also be a huge part of her future. Her best friends on the team include Mary Dohogne and Westlake. They have all been on the team together for the last four years.

"I kind of distanced myself from everybody freshman year," Lawson said. "I don't know, just out of nervousness and just being new and everything, but they've always been there. They've never rejected me, and they've always been incredibly supportive. Gloria, she heads the Bible study for cross country, and we all get together every Wednesday night, and they're just supportive and provide encouragement.

"Gloria and Mary are now the captains of the team and we made a goals sheet just to figure out just what you want to do and how you want to do it. I can't explain how awesome they've been, but our relationship isn't ending after this year, so they can't get rid of me now."