Cross Country Round-up: Hagan-Stone Cross Country Classic

 

In their final race before the ODAC Championship, the Quakers harriers once again ran the rolling hills of Hagan Stone Park in the Hagan Stone Park Cross Country Classic. Both teams faced a strong field of Division I, II, and III schools including Virginia Commonwealth, Duke University's "B" team, and the NY Institute of Technology. The women also faced ODAC powerhouse Lynchburg College, which is ranked among the top-10 teams in the NCAA Division III South/Southeast Region.

The men's team ran first for the first time this season. Chris Walker led the Quakers and broke the 30-minute barrier for the first time in his college career with a team-best 29:38.1. His time ranks among Guilford's top-10 at Hagan Stone. Leon Odell also had another strong race finishing in 29:59.1 to break 30 minutes for the second straight week. Nursing a sore foot, Jeremy Bante finished third for Guilford in 30:33.1. Marc Ramsay also turned in a good race with a season best 31:02.4. Brett McDonough rounded out the Quakers' top five in 33:12.0. Ethan Wiley turned in the best time of his career (34:04.1). Tyler Brown finished seventh for Guilford in 34:43.1. Nico de la Vega-Billingsely finished in 35:20.3 followed by Chad Currin, who ran his personal best time by 2:30, completing the course in 35:33.8. This is Chad's first year running cross country and he has improved tremendously throughout the season.

The men placed eighth among nine Division II and III teams. However, the Quakers competed without Jeremy Wang, who was taking the GRE. With Jeremy in the lineup, the Quakers would have easily been in the race's top five.

The women's team was led by Grace Normann, who ran a personal-best 21:41.5. Carolyn Herlehy ran her second straight race under 23 minutes, finishing in 22:34.8. Caroline Gadsby finished third for the Quakers, running a personal best 23:31.9, her first time under 24 minutes. Johanna Naradzay had her personal best by 1:30 with a fourth-place 24:15.4. In the past two races, Johanna has dropped more than two minutes from her personal record. Paige McCall finished next in 24:32.8, her best time as a Quaker. Emily Frenzel was sixth for the Quakers in 25:46.9, followed by Emily Querin's 27:04.3. Rachel Dede, another first-year runner, was eighth in 28:41.0, followed by Dana Small in 30:53.2.

The women's team placed eighth among 15 Division II and III schools. The women's team competed without Charissa Duncan, who was not feeling well and would have helped lower the team score.

The Quakers compete next October 27 at Washington and Lee University in the ODAC Championship. The weekend is Parents' Weekend at W&L, and there are no hotel rooms left in Lexington. For parents seeking a hotel, Guilford will be staying in Roanoke, which is one hour south of Lexington.

-Submitted by head coach Jamie LaFollette.