The Oberlin College women’s and men’s cross country teams got back to competition this past weekend with third and sixth place finishes, respectively, at the Wooster Invitational on Saturday.
Oberlin had gone two weeks without a meet before their trip to Wooster, giving the teams plenty of time to prepare.
“We’re training really well,” junior Adam Greeney said. Greeney noted that the new head coach Jason Hudson had scheduled fewer meets this season, affording more time for training.
Ten men’s teams and 11 women’s teams attended the Wooster Invitational, including three other North Coast Athletic Conference teams: Hiram College, Kenyon College and the College of Wooster.
With their 71 point finish, the Yeowomen were one of only three teams under 100 points, falling just short of second-place Kenyon. Division II Ashland University was way in front with 50 points.
Senior Laura Feeney set the pace, finishing third with a time of 19:41, but she was still almost a minute behind top finisher Tara Griffin of Ashland.
Senior Lori Tuchfeld was only seconds behind Feeney, taking sixth place with a time of 19:54. Junior Julia Goecke finished 12th and first-year Rebecca Turnbull rounded out Oberlin’s top-25 finishers at 23rd.
Sophomore Shannon Morris and junior Sarah Bennett were neck-and-neck, finishing only a second apart at 27th and 28th, but as Oberlin’s fifth finisher, only Morris’s place counted in the scoring.
The men tallied 148 points, finishing 13 points behind fifth-place Wooster.
Junior Adam Greeney posted a better time than any he ran last season, placing sixth with 27:11. Junior Alex Scally and senior Mike Severino were Oberlin’s other top finishers, placing 16th and 23rd, respectively. Scally ran a 27:48 and Severino finished in 28:16.
“Our fourth and fifth runners are training very well,” Greeney said, “but we’re waiting for them to race as fast as their training.”
The men’s team has a lot of potential to improve in the standings as their four and five improve over the season.
The Yeorunners will get another two-week layoff between meets as they prepare for the All-Ohio Meet, hosted by Ohio Wesleyan University this year. The All-Ohio Meet features teams from throughout the state, including all divisions.
“It’s a big fun race,” Greeney said. “Our places don’t matter so much.”