ST. JOSEPH, Minn. - If you still have the drive, you can always keep running competitively, even after your collegiate cross country and/or track and field careers comes to an end.

But the feeling of being part of a team is harder to recapture. And it's something a lot of runners miss post-graduation.

 

College of Saint Benedict cross country and track and field coach Robin Balder-Lanoue '91 – a former Bennie distance standout herself - certainly did.

That's why in 1995, she and friends Chris Fredrick (a multi-time All-American at Concordia) and Paula Willis formed Baba Yaga, an all-women running team that has competed annually at a relay event for 30 years now.

Over time, the team has come to include many CSB alums who ran for Balder-Lanoue during their time at the school.

"There's nothing like being part of a team," said Balder-Lanoue, who has been the head cross country coach at CSB since 1997, and the head track and field coach since 1999.

"It pushes you to dig deeper and do things you didn't think you could. That was a big part of what I loved about my own experience running at Saint Ben's, and it was the same kind of experience I wanted to continue having in my life. It's not just the competitive side of it. There's also the community side. That strong sense of being, and of feeling valued, supported and uplifted by other strong women."

The team – which takes its name from a supernatural woman in an old Russian folk tale – competed at the Hood to Coast event in Oregon for the first 20 years of its existence, winning the women's title nine times.

For the past decade, Baba Yaga has traveled, competing at the Northwest Passage Relay event in Washington three times, as well as at events in Niagara Falls (Canadian side), Utah, Lake Tahoe and here in Minnesota.

In 2017, the team competed at the Ragnar Reach the Beach event, a 204-mile competition that starts in Lancaster, New Hampshire and finishes on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean in Hampton Beach with each of a team's 12 runners taking three legs of the race.

After taking a team vote, Baba Yaga elected to return to New Hampshire to celebrate its 30^th anniversary at this year's Reach the Beach competition, which was held last Friday (Sept. 12) through Saturday (Sept. 13).

And things couldn't have gone better.

The team finished in a time of 27 hours, 41.10 seconds, which won the women's master's division and was the fastest time of any women's team overall.

Baba Yaga actually finished 28^th overall in a field of over 300 teams, beating even the men's master's division champion.

"This race just fills my soul," Balder-Lanoue said. "I had a conversation with my team (the CSB cross country team, which did not have a meet scheduled this past weekend) before I left. I told them I hated leaving for a few days during the season. But being part of (Baba Yaga) rejuvenates me. I love being surrounded by such talented and inspiring people. It helps get me ready to do the best job I can as a coach (at CSB)."

The team's roster has changed over the years, though Balder-Lanoue and former Boise State runner Christine Olen have been part of every competition except one each - during years when they were pregnant.

Other runners – like former CSB All-American Missy (Peterson) Trenz '98, Katie (Vanselow) Zuehlke '98 and Lori Stich – have been part of the team for almost or all of the last 25 years.

"It's such an awesome experience," Trenz said. "Every time, we say we're doing this for fun. But we're all so competitive and we still end up doing really well. It's the people and the friendships that keep me coming back. This is the one weekend per year I get to see everyone and catch up. We run hard, but we do a lot of fun and goofy stuff too. It's something I look forward to being part of all year."

This year's team of 12 (average age 49) featured seven CSB graduates in all. That included Cindy (Blendermann) Perone '04, who was added as a substitute just a few days before and dropped everything to get to New Hampshire, and Meghan Orgeman '05, a former standout sprinter at CSB who is now the head girls coach at Alexandria High School.

The rest of the team included Erica Litschke Schramm '00, Cari Setzer, Kim Bendel, Angie Voight and Sarah (Omann) Roberts '00.

Orgeman was part of the team the last time it competed in New Hampshire – joining late as a substitute - and was thrilled to return this year.

"It's such an honor to be asked," Orgeman said. "I was a sprinter at Saint Ben's, not a distance runner. But I remember hearing about these amazing women who were part of Baba Yaga and thinking how fun it would be to be part of that."

"It's incredible to be surrounded by these other elite runners," Orgeman continued. "It pushes you to be better too. Everyone in this group is so welcoming. I've only done this twice, but I already feel like I'm part of Baba Yaga. I actually get a little teary-eyed thinking about being part of such a special group. "It's not just a great team, but a great family of women as well."