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27 I t's not uncommon for family members to share similar passions and the Sommer brothers, Karson and Konnor, are no different. e Pleasant Valley (Iowa) High School graduates have reconnected in 2018, competing for the University of Iowa cross country team. Karson is a two-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree, entering his junior season. Konnor is a freshman, eager and willing to learn from his big brother. "e best part of having my brother on the team is that I already have a friend here, which helped me integrate easier onto the team," Konnor said. "It is nice to have someone on the team whom I can easily relate to and get along with." While Konnor sees comfort in Karson, the oldest Sommer uses his younger brother as motivation. "Being the older brother, I don't want to let Konnor beat me in any race or even in a workout or in mileage," Karson said. "Having been on the same high school team for two years, there has always been a driving factor to push each other to be better." e brothers leaned on and pushed each other during the offseason and during the first few weeks of the season when Karson was unable to train with the team because of a summer job. During that time, Konnor was evolving his running toward collegiate-level workouts. "e majority of this summer, I went for my runs alone or with Konnor, which helped me on days where I might have felt less motivated aer a day of work," Karson said. "I think we will be able to help each other with training and support each other's pursuits throughout our time in college. Being able to compete in college with a brother as a teammate is something not many people get to experience." e brothers come to running naturally. eir father, Kevin, competed for the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh as a sprinter and jumper. e brothers have run together since they were in fih and seventh grade, respectively, as members of the Mississippi Valley Track Club. ey have pushed each other since, but the level of competition has increased, and they have surrounded themselves with a collection of talent that has upped the ante. "We have a great group of guys that show up every day ready to work and that is going to help them at the end of the season," Karson said. "It's great that the team always has a positive outlook and high goals. We have outlined goals as a team and I think we are taking steps to achieve those goals." Konnor echoes his brother's outlook and says it pushes him to contribute. "As a freshman, I want to successfully make the transition from high school to Division I running," Konnor said. "I want to be a teammate who is supportive and reliable, someone who will put in work each day to push myself and my teammates to excel and exceed expectations." OCTOBER SCHEDULE Oct. 12 at Bradley Invite (W) Oct. 23 at Pre-Nationals (M) Oct. 19 at Illinois Open Oct. 28 at Big Ten Championships