The tactic was a legitimate strategy, yes, but it was a dick move. It is not the same as Bush/Touhy for several reasons: Bush is the senior member of the wolfpack, Touhy had won a title earlier in the day, and Bush took the race decisively in the last 300 meters. Amaris letting Chmiel do all of the work until the last 100 meters and then take what would have been her one and only ACC title just sucked. That, and having her shirt tucked into her bra the whole race. That was bizarre (begging for a DQ). I was excited when Amaris transferred in because of the boost to the XC team, but so far she seems pretty self centered. I did catch the look by Chmiel and it spoke volumes. Right after a tough race is when she would be less able to censure herself and her true feelings might seep through. We saw a similar exchange between Bush/Touhy last year, and I don't think the emotion conveyed there was misinterpreted either.
I spent many years as a teacher sorting out issues between talented girls, and now I am a counselor. I am a huge fan of NC State running, but I am also interested in the team dynamic and whether the "hearts and rainbows" that they spew in interviews is for real, simply because if it is it would be truly remarkable. If Henes has truly achieved getting talented young women to be selfless and not competitive or jealous or resentful then she should write a book for humanity's sake. There are some little "seeps" that I have noticed that suggest that Touhy may have a couple of frenemies on her team. Of course they would never outright show aggression towards her. Girls are trained from birth to be "nice", but there is definitely some passive aggression that suggests that a couple of them have some resentment that they are burying as hard as they can. I suspect that they are more envious of the attention that Touhy gets than being resentful of her personally. The girls I am thinking of seem hungry for attention, and it likely burns them up that Touhy gets so much without even trying. Chmiel and Touhy are close, so Chmiel shooting that look makes me think this might have a grain of truth. For what it's worth, I also have wondered if a hidden dark side of NC State might be what has really plagued Starliper. Mental/emotional pain often shows up as physical pain, and I am not the only person on this board who has had the impression that Starliper might not have been an insider on that team.
I definitely think Touhy has lots of true and genuine friends on her team, but there are a couple that seem salty. I really wanted Chmiel to get the title. She has been such a stellar runner for NC State, and she was second to Touhy in high school while also being second in the nation. Those two being from the same state meant that Chmiel did not get much recognition for what was some of the best high school running ever. It would have been so awesome to see her get to be first and get a title.
I also watched the SEC 5000, and my respect for Parker Valby just grows. She has a ton of talent, and she is tough. I have never seen anyone look so strong running while also limping. I am so happy that Mercy didn't get her at the line. Valby deserved to win. She is just so talented. When she gets serious about racing tactics she is going to be an even bigger force than she is now. She just beat the Alabama runners on pure talent and grit. If she can get healthy she could have a huge career in running.