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Abilene Christian cross country coach Lance Bingham was sold on Briahna Gerlach’s toughness when he learned she won state track championships in the 800 meters, mile and 2-mile in the same high school season.

But toughness in remote Alaska doesn’t necessarily translate to a successful collegiate career, particularly at the Division I level. Bingham had heard about Gerlach through a former runner of his at Liberty University who was now coaching high school in Alaska.

And he was happy when Gerlach indicated she would attend ACU. While he knew she had the talent, Bingham couldn’t say with certainty that the distance runner extraordinaire from Gakona, population 218 (according to the 2010 Census which was three people more than the 2000 Census) would thrive 3,690 miles from home.in Abilene.

Strong finish

Gerlach “arrived” last spring during the outdoor track and field season. It wasn’t only her grades that improved her second year of college – she made the Southland Conference honor roll. She won her first steeplechase competition at the Oliver Jackson Twilight meet at ACU. Her confidence grew, and she attacked her summer workouts back home in Alaska with renewed vigor.

“She started really coming on at the end of last year,” Bingham said. “College is different from high school, especially for distance runners. I believe that the day she visited here, it was like minus-20 back home. There were days when she was training on the treadmill. College is all about balance, putting it all together. It is never an easy adjustment. She can compete.”

When Gerlach arrived back in Abilene, the junior social work major was primed and pumped for the cross country season. She won her first race, the Naimadu Classic, in only her second attempt at the 4-kilometer distance.

“It was awesome,” Gerlach, 20, said of her first collegiate cross country win. “It gave me confidence that I can compete on this level and to know the summer workouts paid off.”

Making herself at home

Gerlach is honest as she looks back at recruiting. No, she had never heard of Abilene Christian, despite its reputation for excellence with its distance running program. No, she knew nothing about Abilene or anything the West Texas city had to offer. In fact, despite being a small-town athlete, she envisioned herself as a “big city person.” That changed during her official visit to ACU.

“When I took my visit, met Coach Bingham and the team, I was certain this was where I wanted to be,” Gerlach said. “The next day on the way home, I called from Dallas and verbally committed. It was a really nice-sized university and city. When I saw Abilene for the first time, I knew there was enough to do.”

Gakona, located 200 miles northwest of Anchorage, has one gas station and restaurant. Both are open only during the summer, according to Gerlach. The post office, however, is open year-round. So is the child advocacy center where her mother, Kelly Gerlach, still works. The town is not big enough to have a high school. Students matriculate 18 miles southeast to Glenallen.

Gerlach is a third-generation Alaskan who loves her home state. Unlike her parents, however, she doesn’t plan to return after she graduates. She said she will continue running and those long sessions on the treadmill are not for her.

“Great decision for me,” Gerlach said of ACU. “It’s nice to hang with teammates and great to have (fellow distance runner) Carnley Graham as a teammate. I couldn’t envision myself anywhere else.”

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