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<p class="p1">Taylor Tubbs races in the Southeastern Conference Championships on Nov. 1, 2013, on the Mark Bostick Golf Course.</p>

Taylor Tubbs races in the Southeastern Conference Championships on Nov. 1, 2013, on the Mark Bostick Golf Course.

When the women’s cross country team lines up for the Mountain Dew Invitational on Saturday, they’ll be fielding a nearly unrecognizable team than the one that finished third at the event in 2013.

The returning women who participated, sophomore Taylor Tubbs and redshirt junior Macy Huskey, hope to improve on their finishes from last year, where both ended up outside the top-10 individually.

Huskey and Tubbs, along with freshman Lauren Brasure and redshirt freshman Becky Greene, think they have the depth to make up for their lack of collegiate experience.

After Tubbs strung together multiple impressive finishes in her freshman year, it seemed like only a matter of time until she would take on leadership role within the team.

After spending the summer working on her speed, Tubbs knows she’s only continuing to improve.

She proved it by opening the season with a first-place finish at the Western Carolina Invitational on Aug. 30

It was an inevitable step for a runner who showed consistent improvement in her freshman campaign, one that saw her finish as a top-five scorer in all six meets she competed in.

Upon her arrival in Gainesville, the young freshman was quickly taken in by redshirt senior Agata Strausa, the leader of last year’s team with fellow senior Cory McGee. The two became roommates, with Strausa imparting as much knowledge she knew to the Sebring, Fl., native.

“I felt like she was not only my teammate, but also my best friend,” Tubbs said. “It was tough to see her go.”

Fittingly enough, Strausa boldly won the Mountain Dew Invitational in 2012, her first race as a Gator. It ended up being the fastest 5k of the season, and Strausa’s career only took off from there.

If anything, Tubbs would be satisfied with reaching the milestones that Strausa set in her time here.

Hopefully, it’s time for the student to overtake the mentor.

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“I feel like I’m more of a team leader this year,” Tubbs said. “I’m hoping to be in the top-50 this year.”

Tubbs wants to be a leader, and she should feel like one. Her season opening win makes her the only lady Gator on the roster to win a race.

While the team is young, they’re very deep. Tubbs knows that the team needs some of the developing runners on the team to step up if they have any hopes of going far.

“We need someone to step up to the number five, because the team will be more balanced than last year,” Tubbs said. “If that happens, I think we have a shot at making nationals.”

Follow Graham Hall on Twitter @graham311

Taylor Tubbs races in the Southeastern Conference Championships on Nov. 1, 2013, on the Mark Bostick Golf Course.

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