TULSA, Okla. -- The John Brown University women's cross country team placed sixth out of 10 teams at Thursday's (Sept. 4) Distance After Dark meet hosted by Rogers State (Okla.) at the Mohawk Sports Complex, posting a team time of 1:42:32 (172 points) in the 109-runner field.
Freshman Abigail Stucker led JBU with a strong ninth-place finish, clocking 18:28.89 over the 5,000-meter course. Sophomore Paige Andrews provided solid support in 34th place with a time of 20:26.62.
John Brown's scoring was completed by sophomore Tori Calder in 42nd place (21:11.64), freshman Edith Bell in 43rd place (21:12.17), and sophomore Anna Claire Orr in 44th place (21:13.16). The Golden Eagles' top five runners demonstrated strong pack running with their third through fifth scorers finishing within two seconds of each other.
Rounding out JBU's top seven were sophomore Adelyn Janssen who placed 46th in 21:25.17 and junior Esther Norwood who finished 51st in 21:41.75. The Blue and Gold's top seven runners posted a 3:12 spread from first to seventh place.
Rogers State claimed the team title with 24 points behind individual champion Amy Morefield's winning time of 17:35.63. Oklahoma Christian finished second with 54 points, while Oklahoma Baptist took third place with 82 points in the competitive field.
"Proud of both the men and women for executing Coach Ledbetter's game plan," admitted head coach Peter Cunningham. "They were told to get out controlled and then hunt late, and they did exactly that—hitting splits like clockwork.
"Our women's team is young, with each of our top seven runners being a freshman or sophomore. Even so, tonight's stats were nearly identical to last year's at this meet, when we had a senior- and junior-heavy squad. We're excited for what's to come."
The Golden Eagles open the 6,000 meter part of its season on Saturday (Sept. 20) at the Missouri Southern State Stampede. Start times at the Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course have not yet been announced.
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