(RMC Athletics release)
Cedar Rapids, Iowa – Rocky Mountain College cross country teams wrapped up the 2018 season with finishes of 23 and 26 at the 2018 NAIA Cross Country National Championship.
Rocky’s men finished 23rd in a field of 35 other teams. The Battlin’ Bears finished the 8K race with a total score of 563 and a total time of 2:10:21.
Rocky’s Isaac Petsch led the Battlin’ Bears in the race after finishing in 80th on a time of 25:34. Jackson Duffey finished only a few seconds behind him in 86th place with a time of 25:37. Elijah Boyd ran a time of 25:45 and finished in 104th place. Eddie Loughran finished in 206th place on a time of 26:28. Joseph Vanden Bos placed 260th after running a time of 26:57. George Beddow finished the course in 27:10 to place 275th. Keegan Council ran a time of 27:31 to finish in 291st.
The Bears close a season in which they won the Carroll Early Bird Open and the Providence Open. They finished in second at the Frontier Conference Championship.
Rocky’s women placed 26th, finishing the 5K race with a total score of 619 and a combined time of 1:36:32.
Corinne Hamilton secured the top finish among the Battlin’ Bears. She placed 111th with an overall time of 18:49. Sydney Little Light who finished in 116th place with a time of 18:51. Courtney Hallock finished in 126th on a time of 18:57. Mei-Li Stevens ran to a time of 19:28 and a 202nd place finish. Larissa Saarel finished in 288th with a time of 20:26. Carrie Cota placed in 291st after finishing in 20:29. Guan-Yin Stevens finished with a time 20:45 and placed in 306th place.
The Battlin’ Bears end a season marked by improvement. They finished last during the 2017 Frontier Conference Championship. This year Rocky placed second.
“The whole team has improved a bunch. They are close,” said head cross country coach Mike McLean. “For the girls to go to nationals is a big up for our program and an upswing for the cross country program as a whole.”
