Cross Country Runs Well At NCAC Championship
The NCAC cross country coaches turned out to be quite prescient with their predictions, as the Tigers finished where they were picked in the pre-championship poll: the men ninth and the women eighth.
WOOSTER, Ohio – The North Coast Athletic Conference cross country coaches turned out to be quite prescient with their predictions for the Wittenberg teams, as both the men and women finished where they were picked in the pre-championship poll: the men ninth and the women eighth.
The Tigers, who improved continually throughout the 2012 season, received several strong finishes on each side running against what head coach Craig Penney called "one of the deepest cross country conferences in the country."
Junior Molly King (Springfield, Ohio/Northeastern) posted the best finish of any Tiger, male or female, earning second team All-NCAC honors by finishing in 12th place, a one spot improvement from 2011, on a time of 23:54.2.
Following King were junior Shannon Kelleher (Hilliard, Ohio/Darby) in 56th on a time of 25:56.3 and senior Chelsey Williams (Fort Wayne, Ind./Canterbury) in 65th at 26:25.2, with freshman Sarah Webb () not far behind in 71st on a time of 26:48.3.
Senior Trevor Grandy (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman) headlined the men's effort by finishing 28th overall on a time of 27:36.0. He was followed closely by Jacob Kuntz (Versailles, Ky./Woodford County) in 35th place at 27:49.0. Rounding out the Tigers' top 70 finishers were junior Wade Westbrook (Columbus, Ohio/Whetstone) in 59th on a time of 28:34.2 and junior Sean Redfield (Fredonia, N.Y./St. Francis) in 66th at 28:46.8.
The Tigers' task now is to prepare for the 2012 NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional Championship Meet, hosted by Anderson University at the Yule Golf Course in Alexandria, Ind., on Saturday, Nov. 10.