WILMINGTON, Ohio- Both the Capital men's and women's cross country teams staged stellar outings at the Wilmington Fall Invitational, with the men placing 16th and the women finishing 13th out of 25 squads.
Running on the same course that will host the OAC Championship meet on October 31, the Crusaders ran at a record-setting pace, as 11 CU runners recorded their best times of the season.
"A lot of people set their personal best times, which was awesome. Team wise, there are still some goals that we are looking to get," head coach Rachel Barends said. "I'm very excited for where we are at now and where I think we'll be in the weeks to come. It was important for the team to run here today so that they were able to get comfortable with their surroundings before they race here in the OAC meet."
With 10 freshman and 16 underclassmen making up the men's and women's roster, Barends said the experience of seeing the young runners evolve into competitive collegiate runners has been exciting.
"Being an extremely young team, it has been really rewarding to see the teams come together and to see them start to attack the course on race day. Everyone is coming into their own as runners, and they are running as a pack, which is great. Now, we just need to work on getting that pack a little faster," Barends said.
Leading the Capital men for the second time this season was freshman Bret Nehrenz (Seville, OH/Cloverleaf HS), who ran his best race of the season with a time of 28:15 for 87th place.
"The camaraderie on this team is very good, and I think it shows when we race," Nehrenz said. "We're feeling better and faster with every race. I'm looking forward to coming back here for the OAC meet in two weeks."
Capital received a resurgent performance from senior Joel Eversole (Waverly, Ohio/Waverly HS), whose time of 28:44 was his best mark since running at Wilmington a year ago. An 800-meter runner the Crusader track team, Eversole showcased his speed by sprinting the final 300-meters of the race to earn 110th place.
"I felt great out there today, and I think this is the beginning of great things for this team and myself," Eversole said. "With every race, we're getting stronger and gaining more confidence."
Freshman Josh Beaudoin (Pemberville, Ohio/Eastwood HS) led a pack of three Capital runners with his personal best time of 29:27, which was good for 135th place.
Sophomore Alex Moore (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Davidson HS) followed closely at 29:45 (145th place), while freshman Ben Herbert (Chagrin Falls, Ohio/Kenston HS) took 158th place with his personal best time of 29:55.
The Crusader who had the biggest improvement on his previous times this season was sophomore Jacob Frye (Groveport, Ohio/Groveport Madison HS), whose time of 31:50 (211th place) was well over three minutes faster than his previous personal best mark.
Overcoming injuries to compete for the first time this season was senior Brad Siebert (Celina, Ohio/Celina HS), who had gamely race that resulted in a time of 37:58 (251st place).
Pacing the Capital women for the third time this season was freshman Emma McCarran (Mansfield, Ohio/CrestviewHS), who claimed 49th place with her personal best time of 20:41. Sophomore Sarah Trick (Tipp City, Ohio/Tippecanoe HS) followed suit by coming in 65th place with her season best mark of 21:01.
Emily Zapp (Gahanna, Ohio/Gahanna Lincoln HS) spearheaded a trio of freshman with her personal best time of 21:30 (92nd place). Casey Simmons (Beavercreek, Ohio/Beavercreek HS) followed with her career best time of 21:40 (102nd place), while Rebecca Muntean (Boardman, Ohio/Boardman) continued her strong season by running a 21:41 (104th).
"With a lot of us being freshmen, we don't know any of the courses that we are going to race on heading into meets. Now that I know most of the course, I know where to attack, and where to hold back when I race here again," Muntean said. "It was a great day for our team, and this experience will help us out in the long run."
Hannah Childs (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview HS) garnered 110th place with her time of 21:44, which marked the third time this season that she dropped her personal best mark.
"These are great kids, and I'm already so proud of them," Barends said. "They've got so much potential, and I think they're going to do well in two weeks."