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OBERLIN, Ohio - The Tiger men's and women's cross country teams turned in a pair of outstanding finishes at the 2008 North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) championship meet, hosted by Oberlin College. The highlight was undoubtedly the women's team, which placed fourth in the nine-team field, its highest finish since joining the conference in 1989.
On the men's side, sophomore Kevin Frick (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview) led the way as the Tigers took seventh in the 10-team men's field. Leading the way for Wittenberg's women, freshman Mary Pfeifer (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman) claimed the fifth overall place in the conference, a place that landed her on the first-team All-NCAC squad. Also, as the top freshman in the NCAC, Pfeifer also earned the honor of Newcomer of the Year. Finishing right behind Pfeifer was fellow freshman Anna Henry (Chagrin Falls, Ohio/Kenston), who took another first-team All-NCAC spot as the sixth-place finisher.
In search of their first all-conference finisher since 2003, the women more than broke through that barrier, placing three in the top 10. Freshman Darcy Dubuc (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven) took ninth overall to continue the Tiger parade of all-conference honorees. Her finish landed a second-team All-NCAC mention. Rounding out the scoring pack for the Tigers were two more first-year students,Emma Crosby (Rochford, Mich./Rockford) and Jordan Stafford (Enon, Ohio/Greenon) in 41st and 44th, respectively.
For the men, behind Frick's 28th-place finish, sophomore Andrew Carter (Springboro, Ohio/Springboro) placed 41st in the talented field, while senior Gabe Savage (Lewisburg, Ohio/Tri-County North) took four spots back for Craig Penney's squad. Rounding out the top five for the Tigers were sophomore Matt Overturf (Bellefontaine, Ohio/Benjamin Logan) and freshman Jarrett Cowgill (Worthington, Ohio/Thomas Worthington).
The seventh-place finish in the standings for the men was the best since 1999. Both teams look to carry their strong performances into the Great Lakes Regional meet at Otterbein College on Nov. 15.
Written By: Ben Bradley, SID Assistant