“We had a great week of practice coming into this race, and we talked about goals we wanted to set for ourselves for this race,” said MVNU coach Chip Wilson. “We are coming to the point in the season when there is no reason to hold back, and everyone stepped up to the challenge today. I saw many smiles after today’s race and for good reason. Today’s race saw many personal records from individuals on both the men’s and women’s teams. We have been waiting for a day like today when everyone could put their best race together, and that is what we got.”

In the men’s race, the Cougars finished 12th out of 20 teams with 332 points. Shawnee State University won the race with 57 points to edge Otterbein College, which finished with 73 points. Centre (Ky.) College was third with 148 points.

Individually, David Mutuse of Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) College finished the eight-kilometer race in a time of 25:11.8 to claim the title. Jared French of Otterbein was second at 25:32.6.

Sophomore Mark Porostosky (left) paced MVNU as he set a new school record in a time of 26:11.5 to best his previous mark of 26:47.0 set earlier this year at the Shawnee State University Invitational. His record time was good enough for 17th-place and a medal as he finished in the top 25.

Freshman Chaz Rice finished 57th in a time of 27:31.8, while sophomore Zach Tuggle posted his best time of the season at 28:41.7 to finish 103rd. Sophomore Dustin Wine also had his best time of the season at 29:19.3 as he finished 129th. Senior Tim Grubb set a new personal best at 29:22.4 as he finished 132nd. Freshmen Zach Stiverson (145th, 29:47.4) and David Clark (154th, 30:01.6) rounded out the scoring with Clark also posting a new personal best.

“I was thrilled to see the finishing times that we posted on the guys’ side,” said Wilson. “Even though we have a few injuries that we are battling through, all the men’s team runners stepped up today and ran extremely well. I was very encouraged by the growth that I saw in the runners today, and I am excited to see what will happen next week in Nashville.”

In the women’s race, the Lady Cougars finished 19th out of 22 teams. Otterbein won the event with 58 points, while Franklin College was the runner-up with 134 points and Shawnee State University was third with 159 points. MVNU finished with 573 points.

Individually, Lisa Davies of Shawnee State (18:41.0) edged Otterbein’s Niki Reese (18:48.4) to win the five-kilometer event. Sophomore Tessa Swartzentruber led the way for the Lady Cougars as she finished 81st in a personal best time of 21:52.4. Junior Mallorey Newland was 120th in 22:57.0, while the rest of the MVNU women’s runners each posted a new personal best. Seniors Katie Tracy (137th, 23:42.8), Liz Keffer (right) (145th, 24:01.3), Bethany Haught (174th, 26:55.4), and Kayla Parlin (185th, 30:20.8) had their best times of the year, while sophomore Liz Bayless finished 187th with a time of 30:40.7. Sophomore Brittany Click round out the runners with a personal best time of 31:44.0.

“On the women’s side, I saw many strong finishes, which can be attributed to the hard work these girls have shown these past few weeks,” said Wilson. “These girls are starting to build confidence in their running and they are running smart. They continue to push themselves to the limit and display 100 percent effort. This was a fun day. I am extremely proud of all the MVNU athletes today.”

The Cougars will return to action on October 20th when both teams will travel to Nashville, Tennessee, for the Southeastern Classic.