Kankakee Times

The Olivet Nazarene University men’s cross-country team hit its stride during October as the Tigers recorded one win and two top-three finishes.

The Tigers started the month in Bettendorf, Iowa, at the Fighting Bee Invite and took home the team title and saw two runners finish in the top 10. Wesley Meyer second place in the 8,000-meter run with a time of 26:18.6, while Andrew Gemmaka came in 10th with a time of 27:11.9. Brian Jacques of North Iowa Area Community College won with a time of 25:47.4.

ONU then recorded a third-place finish in the team competition at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Kollege Town Sports Invitational. Meyer was again the top finisher for the Tigers, coming in ninth place with a time of 25:59.1. Matthew Meehan claimed 13th place at 26:18.0.

Following his performances at the Kollege Town Invitational, Meyer was named Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference runner of the week. He was the top NAIA finisher at the meet.

The Tigers secured another third-place finish the following week at the NAIA Great Lakes Invitational. Meyer didn’t run, and ONU’s top finishers were Matt Meehan, in 20th place with a time of 26:11.67, and Tyler Gabriele, in 21st place at 26:11.97. Zachary Bishop  inished in 25th place. Indiana Wesleyan University won the meet.

The women’s team also recorded three top-10 finishes in October. 

The team recorded a seventh-place finish at the Fighting Bee Invitational, led by Jocelyn Barajas, who finished the 5,000-meter race in 31st place with a time of 21:56.4. Deven Gibson was ONU’s second-highest finisher, coming in 39th place at 22:11.4, and Nicole Rodriguez finished in 40th place. St. Ambrose University won the team title, with its Ashley Plumb claiming first place.

At the Kollege Town Invitational, the Tigers finished in fifth place overall against 23 other teams. ONU was led by Alexa Beezhold and Karalynn Brock, who finished in seventh and eighth place, respectively. Beezhold finished in 23:13, and Brock finished 3 seconds behind her.

In the final meet before the postseason, the Tigers claimed a 10th place finish at the NAIA Great Lakes Invitational. Once again, Beezhold was the best runner for ONU, finishing in 21st place with a time of 18:55.83. Brock finished in 40th place at 19:25.29.  Taylor University won the team title and Melissa Winchester of Aquinas College won the individual title.

Next up for ONU’s cross-country teams is the CCAC Championships in early November. The conference championship meet for both the men’s and women’s teams will be held in Elgin, and the top two teams will qualify for NAIA National Championship meet in Vancouver, Washington.