The ISU men’s cross-country set high goals for this season, and on Friday night, it accomplished one of them.

ISU assistant coach Jeremy Sudbury described Friday’s Bulldog 4K Classic as “a great opportunity for some of the younger guys to show their potential,” and that’s exactly what they did.

Among the seven ISU runners was winner Steve Dado, sophomore in kinesiology, and brothers Nick and Jordan Schulze.

“We’re going to keep building this season,” Dado said. “I’m pretty excited to get this done. We’ve got five more races and hopefully we’re just going to get better and better.”

The Bulldog Classic was freshman Jordan Schulze’s first race as a collegiate, and he ran alongside his brother, senior Nick Schulze.

“It was different,” Jordan said. “It reminded me of my freshman year of high school. I definitely had the same nerves, it was a fun race though.”

Nick motivates his younger brother not only during races but also during the everyday team workouts.

“With collegiate running, you have nerves,” Nick said. “It’s nice to have somebody that you’re really close to here. I ran with him all summer, so I’m comfortable running with him. He motivates me to get to another level not just at races, but during our workouts.”

The Cyclones were prepared for the high temperatures that caused the race to be pushed back two hours.

“We’ve been working and running every day so we were used to the heat,” Dado said. “As long as you can hydrate, you’re fine.”

ISU coach Martin Smith emphasized that the team is not just working hard this season, they are working “smart hard” to accomplish their goals.

“We believe in working very hard, doesn’t matter how hard you work, if it’s not smart hard, its not going to work,” Smith said. “We believe it’s very important that our training is developmental and progressive, not only from your freshman year to your senior year, but also within a season.”

Dado may have won the first race of the season, but he says it’s the little things that make it possible.

“You just [have] to focus on the little things: staying healthy and coming to practice prepared everyday to hopefully get better,” Dado said.