COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. - Eamon Cavanaugh had never dealt with serious injury before.

So when the now-senior on the Saint John's University cross country team began experiencing pain in his right shin a year ago, his initial instinct was to tough it out and power through.

"The pain started to pop up around the same time classes started," he recalls. "It started to hurt on some of my runs. But I'm the kind of guy who just wants to run through that stuff. So I kept going, mixing some work on the elliptical in on certain days. I was hoping it would get better and everything would be OK."

Eventually, Cavanaugh tried running a race – competing at the Dickinson Pre-National meet in Newville, Pa., early last October. But the experience didn't go well.

"It hurt really badly, and by the time we were on the flight home, I knew it was pretty serious," Cavanaugh said. "That week, I finally went into the doctor and he was very confident it was a stress fracture. 

"That's nothing you can really run through, so I shut it down at that point."

Which meant sitting out the rest of the season - the first extended time Cavanaugh has missed in either cross country or track and field. 

"It was frustrating," he said. "Even after the diagnosis, I still had thoughts about trying to run through it. I felt like I was letting my teammates down. They didn't feel like that. Everyone was so supportive, and they went on to put together a great season which was really good to see.

"But it was also a little bittersweet because I wanted to be part of it."

Instead, Cavanaugh focused on his recovery, which progressed well enough to allow him to compete in track-and-and-filed last spring. He finished ninth in the 10,000-meter run in a time of 33:08.7 at the MIAC outdoor championships, but without a full offseason of training, it felt like he was working from behind much of the season.

Now, though, he has a full summer of training under his belt and began cross country with a clean bill of health. The results showed when the Johnnies opened the season at the Toni St. Pierre Invitational on Sept. 6 at Boulder Ridge Golf Course in St. Cloud.

Cavanaugh finished the five-kilometer course in a time of 15:34.5, placing third overall to lead SJU to a second-place finish. His performance earned him MIAC men's cross country runner-of-the-week honors.

"It felt great," said Cavanaugh, whose team returns to action at the St. Olaf Invitational, scheduled for Saturday morning in Northfield. "After missing an entire season, I was so glad to be back on the grass. I didn't go into the meet with any expectations. The way cross country works, you try to build throughout the season. You want to be running your best at the end of the year.

"But once I got going, I felt really good. And we had the whole pack up there (in all, five SJU runners finished in the top 15), which made it easier to have a strong race."

SJU head coach Maxwell Kuzara '17 is glad to have Cavanaugh back in the fold, and looks forward to what he can do with an entire season at full-strength.

"Last season was very challenging, but Eamon is a great example of what to do when a significant injury occurs," Kuzara said. "Putting in the work cross-training every single day, staying positive and staying patient. 

"He was able to get back for a very nice outdoor track season last spring, but after a great summer of healthy training he is very fit right now and is reaping the benefits of all that patience and work he put in while injured last year. You couldn't ask for a better example and Eamon has been a great senior leader for us."

Cavanaugh said missing time a year ago made him appreciate everything associated with cross country even more.

"There are hot days when it isn't that easy to get excited about practice," he said. "But when you have to sit out a full year, you're so grateful to be back with your teammates and to be part of the team again.

"It makes it easier to enjoy whatever we're doing."

Cavanaugh graduated from Oak Park and River Forest High School in Oak Park, Ill., but lived in St. Paul until he was eight.

"That was long enough to fall in love with Minnesota," he said. "I'm still a huge Vikings fan. I never switched, even living in Illinois. And my family kept in touch with friends up here."

Still, it took repeated prompting from his parents to give SJU a serious look.

"I wasn't sure about it, but my parents kept bringing it up," he said. "They had a feeling this was a place I might like. So I visited and fell in love with the place. Talking with Maxwell (and former head coach and current assistant) Tim Miles helped sway me as well. They're both amazing people and they embody what makes Saint John's really great.

"I've had such an incredible experience here. Saint John's will always be home for me in a really special way."

A history major, Cavanaugh spent this summer working at the Hill Museum and Manuscript Library – including with the Saint John's Bible. He still leads guided tours of the Bible gallery, as well as working for SJU Campus Ministry.

"I really enjoyed getting a feel for the museum experience, and I think that's something I'd like to do for a career," he said. "We can learn a lot from history as people living today. 

"I want to be able to tell stories and engage other people in them."

Cavanaugh's own story as a runner remains in progress. He's hoping for more successful chapters to come – both this fall in cross country and next spring in track.

"Missing last season left me really hungry," he said. "I want to put it all out there. Emptying the tank isn't always pretty, but that would make me happy.

"Last year showed me we're never guaranteed anything. Now, I just want to be able to say I competed at my highest capability every chance I got."