Henry Schneiderman
Sports Editor
Last weekend, the Fighting Scots men’s and women’s cross country teams ventured to Terre Haute, Indiana to compete in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Championship. Hosted on Depauw University’s LaVern Gibson Course, a field located 40 minutes from the Tigers’ campus, the NCAC Championship meet served as a true test of skill for Wooster as they faced their toughest foes from across the conference. Charlie Cuttino ’26 reflected on the experience: “I felt honored to compete at the conference meet with my team, and [I am] very grateful to have the opportunity to represent the Fighting Scots at this competition.” Following a lengthy bus ride the day before, Wooster began their warmups bright and early Sunday morning ahead of the competition, beginning with the women’s race at 11 a.m. and the men’s at 12:15 p.m.
With a cool breeze behind them, the women’s race opened the day with the echo of the starting pistol and a stampede of racers seeking glory. After a hard fought effort, they found that prestige. Dylan Kretchmar ’25 led the way for the Scots, completing the 6k in 23:59.51 and placing 22nd. This effort was shortly followed up with a neck-and-neck finish from Reeve Helvoigt ’27 and Isabelle Dwyer ’25 who both placed in the top-40 with times of 24:56.47 and 24:59.51 respectively. Next up, Jessie Breth ’25 crossed the finish line at 50th in 25:44.90 before Elise Greenwald ’25 rounded out the Scot’s scorers at 57th with a time of 26:17.47. Igna Mendez ’25 grabbed 59th at 26:25.08 and Julianna Fiori ’25 completed the team’s top 7 with a time of 26:35.86 to finish 61st overall.
“A cross country race is both physically and mentally draining, so the thing that helps me the most to push through the tough moments is to remember that I’m running for my teammates,” said Helvoigt. “Having a team-centered mindset provides a lot of comfort and support to me during a race because I remind myself that I’m running for my teammates and they’re running for me… Also, a huge way we support the men’s team and they support us is through cheering them along on the course during their respective race!”
Shortly after the last of the first stampede crossed the finish, another would begin as the men kicked off their 8k. The Scots put on an excellent performance that saw seniors Drew Robertson ’25 and Will Callender ’25 turn out in the final conference competition of their collegiate careers. Robertson finished 2nd among 95 racers in an effort that placed him 1st for the Scots and only 5 seconds shy of the conference crown as he crossed the finish line at 25:28.90. This result granted Robertson first-team All-NCAC honors for the 2nd time in his career. The runner-up was followed shortly by Callender who found himself receiving All-NCAC second-team honors as he crossed the finish line with a time of 26:24.65, taking 11th place. With this time, Callender became the men’s team’s first 4-time All-NCAC performer in cross country — grabbing the title in each year of his collegiate career. Ben Nichols ’25 followed this effort with a time of 27:08.77 to place 23rd before Jack Schuller ’26 crossed the line in 26th with a time of 27:18.49. Eric Johnson ’25 was next for the Scots as he ran the course in 27:21.28 to finish 29th. Rounding out the men’s top-7 were Basil Keck ’28 for 63rd and Joe Ahmann for 72nd with times of 28:41.14 and 29:11.77 respectively.
These efforts placed the men’s team at No. 4 and the women’s at No. 7. “Running at conference was a lot of fun but also bittersweet because it marks the beginning of the end of the season,” Helvoigt reflected, “We have an incredible group of seniors who not only have been leaders on the team, but have also provided a lot of support and friendship outside of running, so it’s very sad that this is our last Cross Country season with them!” Cuttino furthered the near-end of season reflections; ”Despite overcoming injuries and setbacks at the beginning of the season, I am happy with how I competed, and am happy I was able to contribute to our team’s spirit this season. I look forward to continuing to race against other teams in our conference with my teammates!”
The Fighting Scots will continue their run of success on Friday, Nov. 8, as they host their annual Twilight 5k Challenge at John P. Papp Stadium. Go Scots!
