Three Eagles Qualify for Nationals at Les Duke Invitational
The weather was perfect Saturday morning at Grinnell College for the Les Duke Invitational Cross Country Meet. It was cool, with a slight wind, and the rain held off until the team loaded up the van after the races.
The women started the day off first, running a 6k race. All three of the lady Eagles ran exceptionally well! Freshman Caressa Kluver ran a 30:03, narrowly missing the 29:43 cutoff time needed to qualify to run at Nationals. Freshman Jeannie Wilkinson and sophomore Valerie Busenitz ran together the entire 3.7 miles, finishing a half second apart in 36:11.5 and 36:12 respectively.
The men were up next, running their first 8k race of the season. All three of the Eagle runners ran fast enough to qualify to compete at the NCCAA National Cross Country Championships in Joplin, MO in mid-November! Freshman Conrad Lobb ran a fast and steady pace throughout the race with his fifth mile being the fastest at 5:48 and his third mile being the slowest at 6:10. Lobb's time was an outstanding 30:11. Freshman David Loveall also ran an excellent race, staying close to his teammate, finishing the race in 31:01. Senior Jeremy Kamberger was not far behind, completing the five mile course in 32:01!
Team captain Conrad Lobb commented on the gains that the entire team has made, praising God for the ability to run through pain during training runs. Coach Long was very impressed with the consistent running pace and excellent effort that all of the athletes demonstrated in their races.
The team is thankful for a break from racing this weekend to do some hard workouts this week as well as getting some much deserved rest and recovery. The next meet is on September 24 at the Grandview Viking Invitational which will be held just down the road on DMACC's campus starting at 10:30 AM. We are hoping to see many of our fans there cheering on the teams!
