COMPLETE MEN'S RESULTS |
COMPLETE WOMEN'S RESULTS WILMINGTON, Ohio - Running competitively through a team effort enabled the men's and women's cross country teams to achieve the goals they set prior to the OAC Cross Country Championships at Wilmington. For the second consecutive year, the men's team bested rival Muskingum for a ninth place finish, while the women ran by Muskingum and Heidelberg to claim eighth place.
"This is a huge step in Capital cross country. I told the team that I was very proud of them," head coach Rachel Barends said. "They came out to compete today, and they ran with great effort and as a team. It was nice to see them be rewarded for their hard work."
The men knew that in order to beat the Muskies for the first time this season, they would have to put forth their best team performance of the season.
"We were 60 points behind Muskingum at the All-Ohio meet. For us to beat them today, we knew we would have to work together and to race with a competitive mindset," Barends said. "This was a big accomplishment for our guys."
Responding to the challenge were sophomore Alex Moore (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Davidson HS) and freshman Bret Nehrenz (Seville, OH/Cloverleaf HS), who constantly battled alongside Muskingum's top-two runners throughout the race. After the Muskies' top runners quickened the tempo at the three-mile mark, Moore led Nehrenz on a surge that put the duo ahead to stay. Moore finished in 68th place with a season-best time of 27:47, while Nehrenz set a personal best mark with his time of 27:54 (71st place).
"I turned it up at mile three, and Bret stayed with me the entire time," Moore said. "It was great to have Brett with me, especially when I was hurting during the middle of the race. But he pulled me through and everything worked out. I'm really pleased with the results today, especially after one of my worst races ever here a few weeks ago. I came in today with the mindset that I going to get things done, and I did."
Nehrenz added, "There was a lot of good competition today, especially with Muskingum being next to us pretty much the entire race. Having Alex with me the entire race really helped me push through the pain. That whole backstretch to the finish line I kept saying, ‘You can't let them beat you.' And fortunately I was able to stay ahead. The course was muddy the entire time, so I just kept focusing on being mentally tough and to keep going as hard as I could. We wanted to be under 28 minutes for the race and to beat Muskingum, and we were able to do both."
Also running a season-best time was senior Joel Eversole (Waverly, Ohio/Waverly HS), whose time of 28:33 (89th place) was six spots and 17 seconds ahead of the Muskies third runner.
Outsprinting a pair of Muskingum runners at the finish line was freshman Ben Herbert (Chagrin Falls, Ohio/Kenston HS), who ran his best time of the season with a mark of 29:45 (115th place). Classmate Zach Heyne's (New Castle, Ind./Blue River Valley HS) personal best time of 30:25 was good for 123rd place, while fellow freshmen Josh Beaudoin's (Pemberville, Ohio/Eastwood HS) solid performance earned him 134th place with his time of 31:19.
The sophomore duo of Jacob Frye (Groveport, Ohio/Groveport Madison HS) and freshman Brian Huff (Canton, Ohio/Glen Oak HS) capped off a strong day for the men. Frye equaled his personal best time from this season with his time of 31:50 (139th), and Huff's gamely run resulted with a 144th place finish and a mark of 33:03.
Like the men's top finishers, the women were spearheaded by a strong pack that weathered the course together throughout the six-kilometer race. Leading the trio of women who finished in succession was sophomore Sarah Trick, who finished in 54th place with a time of 25:04. Freshman Emma McCorran (Mansfield, Ohio/Crestview HS) crossed the line one spot and second later at 25:05, while classmate Emily Zapp (Gahanna, Ohio/Gahanna Lincoln HS) came in 56th place with her time of 25:08.
"It was really great to see the girls fighting together to the finish line. The way they worked with each other throughout the race was good to see," Barends said.
Trick pointed to the team's close camaraderie as a main reason for their ability to stay and work together throughout the race.
"We are a very close team that does a lot together when we're not in practice. I think our closeness to each other showed in the race today," Trick said. "I sprinted hard to the finish when we ran here a few weeks ago, but today was different because my teammates were with me at the end. I wanted them to stay on me because I knew that we would run stronger and pass more people together as a team rather than everyone trying to do it alone."
Zapp also pointed to the team's preparation leading up to the race as an essential part of their success Saturday.
"The race felt shorter to me because of some of the longer distance runs we were doing in practice really helped prepare us for today," Zapp said. "I was nervous coming into the race because of the new length of the course, but I just ran after my teammates and that got me focused and into the race. Once I caught up to Sarah and Emma, I told myself just to hang tough and to stay with them. It was really cool to have them push me today."
Staying in striking distance of the main Purple and White pack was freshman Casey Simmons (Beavercreek, Ohio/ Beavercreek HS), who turned in a strong performance with her 72nd place and time of 25:44.
Sophomore Hannah Childs (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview HS) continued her successful season with her 77th place finish and time of 26:02.
Outsprinting a Heidelberg runner at the finish to obtain a key point for the Crusaders was freshman Becca Muntean (Boardman, Ohio/Boardman HS), who finished in 89th place while running a 26:38.
Capital will race in the NCAA Great Lakes Regional meet on Saturday, November 14, in Terre Haute, Ind.