Search recent issues

Review info
• About us
• Subscriptions
• Advertising

By Laurie Stein

The Oberlin men’s and women’s cross country teams concluded their seasons Saturday at the NCAC Championships held on the L.C. Boles Golf Course in Wooster.

Bolstered by three top 20 finishers, the men captured fourth place in the conference with 138 points, while the Yeowomen tallied 179 points for sixth place.

As he has through much of the season, senior Adam Greeney led the team, running the 8,000-meter course in 26:39 for fifth place overall. With this top-seven finish, Greeney secured first-team all-conference honors.

First-year Travis Grout crossed the finish line a minute later, clocking in at 27:39 in 15th place. Senior Alex Scally followed closely behind in 20th at 28:03.

Grout and Scally both earned all-conference honorable mention.

Rounding out the top five for Oberlin were juniors Mike Pennino, 50th, at 29:15, and Dan O’Brien, 59th, at 29:34.

Oberlin finished fourth amidst one of the closest one-two-three finishes in NCAC men’s cross country history.

With five runners finishing in the top 15, Kenyon College grabbed the crown with 52 points. The Lords were closely followed by Allegheny College with 56 points and The College of Wooster with 58. The six-point separation marked the narrowest point differential between the three top teams in conference history, tied with the 1989 meet.

The Yeomen improved two spots on their 2002 season, climbing from sixth to fourth in the conference. This improvement was largely due to the contributions of newcomers like Grout and first-year Jesse Gerstin, who complemented the team’s top two runners in 2002, Greeney and Scally.

The Yeowomen, on the other hand, had almost the opposite scenario this season. In 2002 they finished second in the NCAC on the strength of two top five finishers (Laura Feeney and Lori Tuchfield), both of whom graduated.

This year Oberlin dropped two spots to sixth. The Yeowomen are a young team, with 11 first-years and sophomores, and also lost senior captain Sarah Bennett to injury at the beginning of the season.

Senior Julia Goeke, however, provided a bright spot for the team, covering the 5,000-meter course in 19:58 to grab 15th place and all-conference honorable mention honors.

Also scoring for the Yeowomen were junior Shannon Morris, who placed 36th in 21:12, senior Samantha Yarbrough (48th at 21:35), sophomore Angela Parker (49th at 21:37) and first-year Sarah Newman (55th at 21:52).

Placing four runners in the top 10, Denison University edged out defending champion Allegheny to take the women’s title 32-37.

Since the men’s team, boasting nine first-years and sophomores, is also young, the relative youth of both teams provides cause for optimism for next season, though Goeke, Scally and Greeney will be missed.

Both teams will look to continue to add Allegheny or Denison-like depth in efforts to boost the team’s overall average.