Cross Country Teams Show Up Huge at West Region Meet – Qualify for NCAA Championships

November 16, 2008

The Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Teams picked a great weekend to run a number of personal best times. On a brisk but sunny Saturday at the NCAA West Region Meet in Salem, Oregon, the women won first place and the men finished second. Both teams advanced to the NCAA Championships. The Athenas were ranked 2nd in the region going into the meet, and narrowly defeated none other than cross street rival Pomona-Pitzer 88-89 for their 6th Regional crown. The women were led by SCIAC Runner of the Year Evelyn Ross (SCR SR), who finished 7th. Freshman Julia Rigby was not far behind, finishing 9th.

Seniors Katie Harris and Rachael Martin finished 12th and 27th. Ally Rueschenberg finished 33rd, edging out teammate 34th place Lacey McLean, the girls tying time-wise after the six kilometer race. The top six finishers for the Athenas all earned All-Region honors for finishing in the top 35.

The Stags Cross Country squad turned in their best performance of the season. After finishing second overall in the SCIAC, the men ran an inspired race, capturing second and qualifying for the Championships.

The Stags were led by Florian Scheulen (HMC JR), who finished 3rd overall. Next for the Stags was Mike Van Antwerp, in 12th. The remaining four runners finished in a cluster, working together to claim 21st (Chris Gurney), 23rd (Bryan Chow), 24th (Dillon Ayers), and 26th (Kramer Straube).

Each of the men’s and women’s top 6 finishers ran personal bests and captured All-Region honors. The two teams will travel to the national meet in Hanover, Indiana this upcoming Saturday. This is the 11th time the Athenas have qualified, and the Stags’ 7th. The NCAA Championships will feature the nation’s top 32 teams in Division III, a total of 280 runners.