In the men’s race, Shawnee State University (41 points), which is ranked 21st in the latest NAIA poll, edged 20th-ranked Cedarville (68 points) and Denison University (71 points) to finish first out of 19 teams. The Cougars totaled 291 points to finish in tenth place.

Keegan Rathkamp of Shawnee State won the individual title in the eight-kilometer race with a time of 25:30.8 to finish nearly 27 seconds ahead of the nearest competitor. Sophomore Mark Porostosky (left) was the top finisher for MVNU with a time of 27:25.6 that was good enough for 40th place out of 180 runners. Freshman Chaz Rice was right behind in 43rd place with a personal best time of 27:27.6, while freshman Zach Stiverson was 77th with a personal best time of 28:43.4. Sophomore Zach Tuggle (30:05.2, 108th), senior Tim Grubb (30:08.6, 110th), and sophomore Dustin Wine (30:20.6, 116th) all had solid performances, while freshman David Clark also posted a personal best with a time of 31:56.7 to finish 135th. Junior Ben Hawes rounded out the lineup for the Cougars by coming in 162nd in 35:13.7.

“The men’s team had several runners step up and improve from our first race,” said MVNU coach Chip Wilson. “Along with our veteran runners competing well, our three freshmen all had personal best times. They are getting acquainted with the college style of competition, and I look for them to continue improving each race.”

“I was very happy with how we ran in this race,” Wilson added. “We had a great week of practice and I could see our runners getting stronger each day. This team is highly motivated to succeed, and they want to improve each race. One area of the race that we showed great improvement in was our finishes. Our runners finished very strong, which was a great boost for our confidence. We ran against some excellent competition, and I was very encouraged with our success.”

In the women’s race, NCAA Division I Miami University of Ohio totaled 24 points to beat out third-ranked Cedarville (52 points). MVNU finished 16th out of 19 teams with 481 points.

Individually, Miesha Marzell won the five-kilometer race in a time of 17:52.8 to edge Miami’s Laura Neufarth by 16 seconds. Sophomore Tessa Swartzentruber (right) led the Lady Cougars with a personal best time of 22:38.0 to finish 95th out of 177 runners. Junior Mallorey Newland (23:12.9, 107th), senior Katie Tracy (24:02.0, 128th), and senior Bethany Haught (28:02.7, 161st) all ran well, while sophomore Liz Bayless (31:02.3, 171st), senior Ashley Davis (31:29.2, 172nd), senior Kayla Parlin (32:22.3, 174th), and sophomore Brittany Click (33:50.3, 175th) all had new personal best times.

“The women’s team also saw several runners with new personal bests,” said Wilson. “It is encouraging to watch these girls work hard in practice and then see them be rewarded for their efforts in the race. As we continue to build some experience, I expect their times to continue to drop.”

Both teams will be back in action on Saturday at the Otterbein College Invitational.