On verge of CC Championship, Bullets win title
By Alex Bull, Staff Writer
The women’s cross country team took home its’ third title of the season last Saturday, at the Hood College Open. The men’s team finished in second. As many of the top runners rested for next Saturday’s Centennial Conference Championships, several runners took advantage of the opportunity to step up. Eight women and two men ran season best times on the blustery course. Both the men’s and women’s teams placed six runners each in the top-20 finishers.
The women’s team was led by first-year Natalie Ross, who broke the 25 minute barrier and finished with a time of 24:56 that was good for fifth place. Also breaking into the top ten were sophomore Emily Hartman and first-year Eva Karkuff. Hartman traversed the course with a time of 25:15, placing ninth. Karkuff ran a very tactical race, steadily moving up through the field to finish tenth with a time of 25:30. Junior Bridget Golato finished 16th at 25:57. Sneaking into the medaling spots, sophomore Casey Uhrich and junior Bella Baxter finished two seconds apart at 26:08 and 26:10, taking 18th and 19th. Rounding out the scoring places was sophomore Abby Bull who narrowly missed placing in the finishing sprint. Bull ran 26:23 for 21st place.
The men’s team was led by sophomore Jackson Davis, closely followed by first-year Shae Belenski. Davis and Belenski finished three seconds apart and placed fourth and fifth, running the 8K course with times of 28:08 and 28:11. Sophomores Paul Eppler and Ryan Corbett finished in close succession, placing 15th and 16th. Paul Eppler led Ryan Corbett by just two seconds at 29:11 and 29:13, respectively. First-year James Murphy was not far behind in 18th place running 29:22. Rounding out the Gettysburg medalists was sophomore Trevor Walter running 29:50 for 19th place.
The cross country teams will enter the championship season on Saturday in Westminster Maryland, where McDaniel College will host the Centennial Conference Championships. The women’s race will begin at 11 A.M., and the Men’s race will start at noon.