Jeff Yoder | Echo
The women's cross country team ran the Crossroads League championship to perfection last Saturday as they won the event in overwhelming fashion, taking four of the top six places and five of the top 10.
"We have been blessed with ladies that strive for excellence," said head coach Quinn White. "We have leaned on the strong traditions and successes of the past to propel us to where we are today."
Taylor ran the second-fastest time in the program's history at 94:44 as they won conference for the first time since back-to-back victories in 1995 and 1996.
Freshman Hannah Schroder and junior Allison Steinbeck took second and third with times of 18:46.9 and 18:48.0, respectively. Sophomore Jane Hawks and junior Jenna Norris came in less than a second apart as they grabbed the fifth and sixth spots with times of 18:59.3 and 19:00.1, respectively. Junior Elaine Schmeltz clocked in at 10th with a time of 19:10.0.
Taylor recorded 26 points, and no other team came close in the contest. Indiana Wesleyan finished in second place with 59 points while Huntington, third, finished with 80 points.
"IWU and Huntington went after us from the start," White said. "And IWU held on for nearly 4k before we made our move."
The women's motto for the championship race was "fun, fearless, faith and finish."
Taylor jumped to No. 14 in the polls just over a month ago and now sits at No. 4 in the NAIA. With the dominating victory, the women's team will now compete at NAIA Nationals in Lawrence, Kan., on Nov. 23, where they took second place at Pre-Nationals in October.
The women's team knows that running well and finishing well are two different things. Their buzzword all year has been "finish," and with one race left, finishing the season strong is key.
"We want to 'finish' the season," White said. "To make it to nationals is not enough . . . we want to run with excellence and use our talents fully."
The men's cross country team nearly grabbed first place as well last Saturday. They finished in a close second with a total of 53 points, falling just short of IWU's 47 points.
"Although we fell just short of our goal to win this championship, we ran with intensity and represented Taylor University very well," said men's head coach Lance Vanderberg.
Junior Ethan Evans was the lead runner for the Trojans, coming in fifth with a time of 26:30.5. Junior Scott King and freshman Tanner Dye took eighth and ninth, respectively, with times of 27:10.9 and 27:15.0.
Sophomore Clayton Orender and freshman Matt Hall clocked in as a pair in 15th and 16th place to finish the top five TU runners.
Both Evans and King, Taylor's top two runners, will be heading to NAIA Nationals on Nov. 23 to run as individuals.
Photography by Timothy P. Riethmiller
