Kolka Lands Program High in NCAC Championship

Kolka Lands Program High in NCAC Championship

Springfield, OH- The Tigers stepped foot on their home course this weekend as they hosted the NCAC Championship race at the Clark County Fairgrounds. The men were ranked fourth in the pre-championship poll while the women were ranked fifth. On a muddy course the Tigers ended in sixth on both sides, the programs best for the women since 2016 and since 2010 on the men's side.

The men- The men were able to claim 172 points with a top finish of fourth place from Freshman, Conor Kolka. Kolka crossed the line at 26:37.2, a program best since 1996 when Isaac Barnes finished the NCAC Championship race in fourth with a time of 26:39.7. There is only one other runner in program history with a better finish in 1994 and 1995 from Jeremy Kaufman who placed first and second. Kolka received All-NCAC First Team honors for his accomplishments. Following Kolka in second for Wittenberg was Cullen Sainey in 25th with a time of 27:33.6. The Tigers top five also included Evan Cordle (28:06.3), Andrew Reese (28:13.9), and Trenton Brown (29:04.8). The men had an average race time of 27:56 with finishes of 4th, 25th, 48th, 51st, 70th, 75th, 76th, 80th, 84th, and 98th.

The Women- On the women's side, the Tigers gathered 135 points and an average race time of 24:59. The Red & White were led by Lauren Welker with a 22nd place finish and time of 24:32.6. The Tigers top five for the women also included Megan Keys (24:38.3), Elizabeth Canright (24:45.5), Sydney Khosla (25:21.9), and Caroline Arndt (25:32.0). The Women had finishes of 22nd, 24th, 27th, 34th,  37th, 41st, 64th, 66th, 68th, 71st, and 73rd.