In the men’s race, Ashland University won the 21-team event with 45 points to just nip Case Western Reserve University (52 points). Mount Union College (85 points), DePauw (Ind.) University (114 points), and Kenyon College (189 points) rounded out the top five. The Cougars finished with 449 points in 16th place.

Brandon Bauer from Ashland won the individual title as he covered the eight-kilometer course in 24:37.9 to finish 30 seconds ahead of runner-up Dominic Smith of Case Western Reserve. Junior Mark Porostosky finished 43rd out of 297 runners in 26:15.4 to lead MVNU as he came within four seconds of his own school record. Freshman Nate Winters (27:05.7, 90th), freshman Blake Heinlen (27:55.8, 143rd), sophomore Zach Stiverson (28:09.6, 155th), sophomore David Clark (29:46.0, 229th), freshman Jameson Seymour (30:26.3, 243rd), and junior Dustin Wine (32:41.9, 276th) also each posted their best times of the year with everyone but Porostosky and Wine setting new personal bests.

"The men’s team saw five runners have their personal best times today and all seven runners had their best times of the year,” said MVNU coach Chip Wilson. "This course is always a challenge, but the times show just how hard these guys are working. I saw many smiles from the guys today, and that is always a great thing to see following a race.”

In the women’s race, Case Western Reserve won the 23-team event with 42 points to edge out DePauw (Ind.) University (83 points). Oberlin College (103 points), Ohio Wesleyan University (140 points), and Baldwin-Wallace College (165 points) rounded out the top five. The Lady Cougars finished with 627 points in 20th place.

Joanna Johnson of Oberlin won the individual title as she covered the course in 21:24.7 to finish nearly 32 seconds ahead of runner-up Katie Navarre of Denison University. Freshman Caitlin Campbell (above) was the top finisher for MVNU as she came in 173rd out of 280 runners in the six-kilometer race in a time of 26:18.1. Freshman Katelyn Felger (27:07.1, 196th), freshman Heidi Raidel (28:13.4, 214th), sophomore Ashley Morse (28:56.1, 228th), freshman Lauren Ford (29:23.3, 234th), freshman Nikki Yates (30:06.1, 248th), freshman DeAnna Hardeman (30:08.6, 249th), and junior Brittany Click (36:43.7, 279th) rounded out the lineup for the Lady Cougars.

"Even though the women’s team ran a 6K today instead of the normal 5K, I was pleased with the effort that they gave,” said Wilson. "Running is a very mental sport and when a runner has to prepare for a longer race then they are used to it can be a difficult transition. However, all the girls worked hard through the finish line, and they can use this race as preparation for our upcoming meets.”

"It was a great day for running and we were prepared for a good race,” concluded Wilson. "In my estimation, this was our best week of practice this season and it showed with how both teams ran today. This was definitely more of a challenge today for the women as they were asked to run a 6K intead of our usual 5K, but they all ran their best and finished the race. We have a week off now and we are going to use this time to catch our breath and recuperate after a good start to the season. I am looking forward to our next meet.”

Both MVNU teams will return to action on Friday, October 10, when they compete in the All-Ohio Invitational hosted by Ohio Wesleyan University. Every college and university in the state is invited to the meet regardless of size.