Henry Schneiderman
Sports Editor
Last Friday, Oct. 17, the Fighting Scots men’s and women’s cross country teams ventured to Wilmington, Ohio, to participate in the annual Jenna Strong Invitational. Hosted by Wilmington College, this meet serves as a qualifying competition for the upcoming North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Championships, with the top 12 from each team progressing to that meet. “Everyone did really well out there on Friday,” James Marquis ’28 said. “It was a spectacular meet and a much flatter course than Muskingum, so everyone was having a much faster performance than before fall break.” By the day’s end, the men’s team finished 9th amongst 18 teams while the women grabbed 13th in a pool of 20.
The women’s 5k kicked off the day as runners from 20 institutions dashed across a course populated by 194 competitors. Lauren Acker ’29 finished first for the Scots, completing the 5,000-meter course in 19:47.5 to place 24th overall. “Jenna Strong was probably one of the hardest and most rewarding meets that I got the chance to compete in.” Acker said, “It was definitely what I had always considered to be stereotypical cross-country running. We ran through woods, we ran through a creek — it was what most people think cross-country running is. But the feeling I got after I finished Jenna Strong, and the support I received from the team, made it one of the best meets I’ve had this season.”
Shortly after, Reeve Helvoigt ’27 earned Wooster’s second place spot as she crossed the line at 20:54.7 to place 67th. Amy Gabrovsek ’26 found third for the Scots as she grabbed 75th with a time of 21:09.2. Elise Wheeler ’27 found herself inside the top 100 as she clocked a time of 21:55.9 for 95th. Sylvia Direnzo ’26 (134th) and Naomi Kaczor ’27 (154th) were next with times of 23:13.3 and 24:13.3 respectively. Wyn Caudle ’27 rounded out Wooster’s scoring members, finishing the course in 25:19.0 for 167th. Outside of the top 7, Anaya Brady ’26 (169th, 25:40.8), Ellie Fox ’27 (171st, 25:48.1) and Collette Christopher ’27 (172nd, 25:54.0) all placed within the team’s top 12 to progress to the Conference Championships.
With the conclusion of the women’s competition, the men’s 8k began and saw runners from 18 schools compete in a race of 251 competitors. Joe Ahmann ’26 led the pack, conquering the 8,000-meter stretch in 26:53.3 to place 38th. Seconds later, Zane DeMercurio ’26 crossed the finish line in 41st with a time of 26:55.0. Next up, Basil Keck ’28 completed the challenge in 27:52.9 for the 79th spot before Grant Mentzer’s ’28 28:29.5 finish earned him 109th. Andrew Rombach ’28 was next, crossing the line in 28:57.5 to place 124th. Reese Johnson ’26 grabbed 128th at 28:59.7 and Nick Schade ’27 rounded out the Scots’ scoring efforts with a time of 29:12.5 to place 133rd. Outside of the top 7, Tyler Frye ’29 (140th, 29:21.2), Charlie Cuttino ’26 (142nd, 29:23.7), Jack Schuller ’26 (192nd, 31:14.8), Scott Crawford ’27 (193rd, 31.18.3) and Yann Kariningufu ’28 (204th, 32:04.3) all placed within the top 12 to qualify for the upcoming conference meet. “The meet felt great!” Johnson said. “This was the conference qualifying race, so we were looking to cement the top 12, and everyone ran pretty well. We got our conference group, so it’s looking pretty good!”
By the day’s conclusion, the men finished 9th out of 18 teams and the women finished 13th out of 20, a satisfactory placement for the team and a good indicator for the upcoming NCAC conference meet. “I feel good about conference.” Johnson said, “It’s at Kenyon, which I don’t think anyone has raced at before. It’s a race that everyone is gonna try their all in and try the best they can, and hopefully score well within the conference before the regional race.” This sentiment was echoed by Acker, who said, “I am nervous about the conference meet, I’m not gonna lie, but because this is my first season running cross country in my life, as always, I’m taking every meet as a clean slate and an opportunity to do my best.”
The Fighting Scots Cross Country teams will compete in the NCAC Championships on Sat. Nov 1. In Gambier, Ohio at Kenyon College. Go Scots!
