GREENWOOD, Ind. – A brief look around the Great Midwest Athletic Conference men’s and women’s cross country landscape through two weeks into the regular season.
Quick Hits:
A variety of distances (4 mile, 5K, 6K, 8K) are being tested out by teams early in the fall around the G-MAC as they prepare for the conference championships…Last year’s G-MAC runners of the year, Caroline Hampton (TNU) and Logan Rodgers (TNU), both led the Trojans during a nighttime run in Memphis...Alderson Broaddus (Seaton Invitational) and Davis & Elkins (Forest Festival Invitational) have both hosted events this fall.
Looking Ahead:
Cedarville’s Elvin R. King course will entertain a host of competition the following next two weekends with the Friendship Invitational and the All-Ohio Championships…The Yellow Jackets traditionally welcome teams from all different levels (DI, DII, DIII, NAIA)…This Saturday, teams will be scattered throughout at the Patty Forgey Invitational (Rio Grande), Commodore Invitational (Vanderbilt), Saint Vincent Invitational, Friendship Invitational (Cedarville) and at Penn State-Behrend…The Southern Illinois Invitational, which was supposed to feature Kentucky Wesleyan, was cancelled with no makeup date.
Rising Rookies:
Back-to-back G-MAC Athlete of the Week honors were presented to freshman female runners as Taylor Treadway (AB) and Danielle Haynes (D&E) have burst on the scene…Treadway won her collegiate debut from the onset while Haynes has recorded top-10 finishes in both races so far…Haynes helped D&E to a fourth-place team finish at the Bethany Invitational.
Helium Watch:
Ohio Valley won its first race of the year as both genders grabbed top team honors at the Davis & Elkins Forest Festival Invitational…First-year head coach Brian Hesson saw Andrew Shaffer grab individual honors for the second straight year at the event on the men’s side…Lily Parsons and April Kirk paced OVU in the women’s 6K race by finishing back-to-back at third and fourth overall…Davis & Elkins and Elkins, W.Va., is this year’s host for the G-MAC Championships.
Re-Writing Records:
No one has made a dent in the G-MAC’s top-10 career performance list so far this year (6K, 8K)…D&E’s P.J. Louzy officially clocked the best 8K time on the men’s side with a strong performance at the Bethany Invitational…Cedarville’s Daniel Michalski owns the season’s best 5K time -- and G-MAC's sixth-best 5K time -- after impressing at Dayton’s annual event…He was the first G-MAC Athlete of the Week on the men's side...Hailey Bredeson and Carsyn Koch possess the league’s top two 6K times on the women’s side clocked at the Queen City Invitational.
On the National Radar:
The updated USTFCCCA national rankings were released and regional rankings did not feature any G-MAC schools…Cedarville and Trevecca Nazarene had both made preseason appearances in the regional rankings.
NCAA Championship Watch:
The Midwest Region receives six total allocations (women) and five (men) towards the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships, a bump up from four, respectively, in 2014…Cedarville has competed in the 2012 and 2013 NCAA Championships on the men’s side…The NCAA DII Midwest Regional is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 7, at Evansville, Ind.