BETHANY, Okla. -- The John Brown University women's cross country team secured its highest finish ever at the conference meet, placing a strong second at the Sooner Athletic Conference Championships on Saturday morning (Nov. 9) at Eldon Lyon Park.
Alongside this landmark finish, the Golden Eagles produced a quartet of All-Conference finishes by junior Hope Ahnfeldt, senior Emma Brown, senior Anna Keys, and freshman Cecily Snyder.
"As my first season coaching draws to a close, I want to emphasize and praise the incredible hard work these women have put in," said assistant coach Ben Ledbetter. "I couldn't be prouder of each and every one of them. Before the meet, we discussed what it would take to exceed our conference ranking, and everyone stepped up to the challenge. They raced intelligently and fought for each other, delivering exactly what was needed."
With a cumulative team time of 2:03:25 and an average time of 24:41, the Golden Eagles finished with 61 points, placing second behind team champion Oklahoma City (26 points), which completed the race in 1:57:13. College of the Ozarks (Mo.), in its first season in the league, finished third with 74 points (2:04:25).
For the first time this season, Ahnfeldt paced the team with a stellar seventh-place finish, clocking a time of 24:11.1 over the 6,000-meter course. Ahnfeldt's race not only placed her in the top ten but also secured her a spot at the upcoming NAIA National Championships.
"Hope's dedication and relentless effort secured her spot in the National Championships," Ledbetter added. "I outlined what she needed to accomplish to reach that goal, and she executed it flawlessly."
Not far behind Ahnfeldt was Brown, who placed 11th with a time of 24:26.1, with Keys close behind in 13th place with a time of 24:37.7. Snyder took 14th place, crossing the finish line in 25:01.9. Senior Mikey Duncan rounded out the scoring for the Golden Eagles with a 16th-place finish in 25:07.8, fueling the squad's compact 1-5 split time of 56 seconds.
The overall individual title went to Louise Cocking of Oklahoma City, who finished in 22:09.2, contributing to her team's first-place score of 26 points. OCU's Erika Pena took second place (22:53.6) as the Stars took five of the top 12 spots.
Ahnfeldt will now represent the Golden Eagles at the NAIA National Championships, scheduled for Friday (Nov. 22) in Columbia, Mo. at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course.
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