Oct 16th – The Sojourn’s Athlete of the Week, presented by Amplify Media, is CJ Kelley from the #7-nationally ranked Indiana Wesleyan Men’s Cross Country team.
Kelley is a senior from Garfield Heights, OH, and a graduate of Trinity HS. He ran his freshman year at Kentucky Christian University before transferring to Indiana Wesleyan.
“I knew God was calling me here because [Coach Foss and I] didn’t just talk about running. We talked about faith and what it means to partner worship and running,” Kelley said. “It was an answered prayer because I really wanted to come to IWU.”
Head Coach Brody Beiler is in his first season at the helm of the Wildcats after Coach John Foss led the program for 36 years.
“CJ has mastered the balance of our sport,” Head Coach Brody Beiler said. “He recognized that running is a form of worship and a gift to exercise while also using it as a vehicle for the classroom of life.”
Sophomore teammate Grant Flora has become very close to Kelley through running together.
“CJ is a phenomenal leader. He does a great job of leading by example and is just such a fun guy to be around,” Flora said. “He makes sure that culture continues to be what we want it tobe in the way that we have done things for years, of having a fun culture, but also competitive and faith-based.”
The Wildcats finished 2nd overall at the Twilight Invitational at IWU on Sep. 6, and Kelley placed 45th overall. The team finished 5th overall at the Gans Creek Classic in Columbia, MO, on Sep. 27, where Kelley placed 70th overall. Just recently, the Wildcats finished 1st place at the Ray Bullock Invitational at Taylor University, and Kelley finished 12th overall.
“CJ brings an energy to practice that is unmatched. He is a senior leader who is comfortable and confident with who the Lord created him to be,” Coach Beiler said. “[He] easily sharpens others to be the people who they were also created to be.”
Coach Beiler said that CJ’s biggest attribute to the team is his charisma.
“CJ has a huge heart for Jesus. CJ is always leaning in towards how he can walk humbly with the Lord, and desiring to be intentionally obedient with where the Lord has him in each season of life,” Coach Beiler said. “He brings both wisdom and whimsy and is a joy to many.”
Kelley strives to lead by example while also continuing to push the team toward Christ.
“You don’t have to be on the leadership team to really lead. I think leading is not telling people what to do but leading just by how you live and your lifestyle,” Kelley said. “I try to lead [by doing] the work. We work together. We grind it out together.”
The Wildcats travel to Grand Rapids, MI, for the NAIA Great Lakes Challenge to finish out the regular season before the Crossroads League Championship at Taylor University on Nov. 8 and the NAIA National Championship in Columbia, MO, on Nov. 22.
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