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The Friends University Men’s and Woman’s Cross Country teams won the KCSC Championship meet on Saturday Nov. 5 at a wind blown McPherson course.
Winning for the first time, the men’s team abruptly ended rival Southwestern College’s amazing 31-year conference championship streak led by a first-second finish from seniors Javier Ceja and Matt Ditzer who ran across the finish line at 26:13 and 26:14, respectively.
Dan Neidlinger, Cameron Sprague and freshman Brock Nooney all earned conference honors finishing seventh, eighth and ninth, Haviland native Peyton Wade finished in the #13 spot and earned a conference Honorable Mention, came in behind senior Geo Popoca, who placed in the #12 spot.
Winning the conference for the first time since 2000, the women’s team dominated the top spots on the list with an undefeated Jordan Arnold finishing at a resounding 18:21.
Kaityln Bellsle (18:52), Karissa Cominator (19:10) and senior Cecilla Burley (19:22) finished third, fourth and fifth, respectively.
Both teams will automatically advance to the National Championship Meet in Vancouver, Washington on Sat. Nov. 19.
"I could not be prouder of both teams, but especially the men for rising to the challenge and beating a great Southwestern team," Coach Brad Peterson said. "To stop a streak of 31 years by the legendary Coach Helmer is quite an accomplishment. He is a great coach and a legend and I'm proud to say I coached against him. We have had a lot of adversity this year with health and injuries but we overcame them today and performed well when it counted. Both teams can do very well at the national meet. We are hoping to get both teams in the top 5." (pic)
The Friends University Men’s and Woman’s Cross Country teams won the KCSC Championship meet on Saturday Nov. 5 at a wind blown McPherson course.
Winning for the first time, the men’s team abruptly ended rival Southwestern College’s amazing 31-year conference championship streak led by a first-second finish from seniors Javier Ceja and Matt Ditzer who ran across the finish line at 26:13 and 26:14, respectively.
Dan Neidlinger, Cameron Sprague and freshman Brock Nooney all earned conference honors finishing seventh, eighth and ninth, Haviland native Peyton Wade finished in the #13 spot and earned a conference Honorable Mention, came in behind senior Geo Popoca, who placed in the #12 spot.
Winning the conference for the first time since 2000, the women’s team dominated the top spots on the list with an undefeated Jordan Arnold finishing at a resounding 18:21.
Kaityln Bellsle (18:52), Karissa Cominator (19:10) and senior Cecilla Burley (19:22) finished third, fourth and fifth, respectively.
Both teams will automatically advance to the National Championship Meet in Vancouver, Washington on Sat. Nov. 19.
"I could not be prouder of both teams, but especially the men for rising to the challenge and beating a great Southwestern team," Coach Brad Peterson said. "To stop a streak of 31 years by the legendary Coach Helmer is quite an accomplishment. He is a great coach and a legend and I'm proud to say I coached against him. We have had a lot of adversity this year with health and injuries but we overcame them today and performed well when it counted. Both teams can do very well at the national meet. We are hoping to get both teams in the top 5." (pic)
