By Gabe Bain
The men's and women's cross country teams brought effort and results Nov. 3 at the Crossroads League championships.
Both teams placed in the top five at the tournament held at Indiana Wesleyan.
The men's team finished in fourth and the women's team in second. The men not only ended with their fastest time of the season, but with their fastest time in a race since 2009, finishing in 2:13:46.
The fourth place finish was good enough for them to receive 115 points, behind Goshen's 60, Spring Arbor's 52 and Indiana Wesleyan's 30.
Sophomore Zach Warner led the Trojans with an eighth-place finish and punched his ticket to nationals while completing the race in 26:07. He also received All-Crossroads League honors because of his top-15 finish.
"I thought he stayed focused mentally throughout the race," said Head Coach Ted Bowers. "I felt very comfortable with how he was running."
Three more Trojans finished in the top 30 of the more than 100-person race.
Sophomore Ethan Evans finished 23rd with a time of 26:49.
Coming in two spots behind Evans was senior Corbin Slater, who completed the race in 26:54. Senior Caleb Pack finished 29th, thanks to his 26:56 time.
Rounding out the top seven for Taylor were sophomore Scott King (26:59), freshman Aaron Crull (27:03) and sophomore Jared Reed (27:25).
Their times were good enough for them to place 31st, 33rd and 43rd, respectively.
"Every week, we were faster," Bowers said. "Overall, I am really pleased with our team atmosphere. They are all positive (and) a really great group to be around."
The women's team grabbed a second place finish, although they had higher expectations.
"We went in it to win," said Head Coach Quinn White. "Number one Huntington was on fire. They ran the best race of their season, and we did not."
Huntington edged out Taylor for first by only six points. The Trojans finished the race with a time of 1:36:26.
Freshman Jane Hawks led the Trojans by setting a season personal best, finishing in 18:54 and coming in fifth place. She was only 19 seconds behind the leader, and her strong performance is sending her to nationals next week.
"Jane came in as an excellent high school runner and she just progressed as the season went on," White said. "She fought really hard and she earned her ticket (to nationals)."
Hawks was not the only strong performer. Four more runners finished in the top 17.
Sophomore Allison Steinbeck finished second and placed 13th in the race with a time of 19:21.
Next, sophomores Jenna Norris and Elaine Schmeltz and freshman Sarina Oleson placed 15th, 16th and 17th, respectively.
Norris finished in 19:22, Schmeltz also in 19:22 and Oleson in 19:25.
Hawks, Steinbeck and Norris received All-Crossroads League honors with their top-15 place finishes.
"The season as a whole was really good," White said. "We were ranked every week of the season. This team is very good. We just didn't hit that final goal we wanted."
Hawks and Warner will be participating in the NAIA National Championships in Vancouver, Wash., Nov. 17.
