Cross Country fails to advance from regionals
November 9, 2005

PIPESTEM, W.Va.—The West Virginia Wesleyan men’s and women’s cross country ended their 2005 season on Saturday. The squads were not among the top three schools at the NCAA East Region meet at Lock Haven University (Pa.) and therefore fail to advance to the national championships in Pomona, Calif. on Nov. 19.

Edinboro University swept the men’s (160:40) and women’s (109:59) race by placing four women and three men in the top 10.

Slippery Rock’s Jeff Wiess (31:13) and Indiana University of Pa.’s Mindy Sawtelle (21:01) won the individual titles.

Wesleyan’s men finished 11th out of 25 teams while the Lady ‘Cats came in 12th of 26.

Patrick Reagan (Masontown, Pa.) (33:08) led the way for the men with a 30th place finish. Seniors Jason Gurney (Tiffin, Ohio) (33:47) and Justin Rogers (Milton) (33:52) came in 48th and 52nd, respectively. A pair of freshman rounded out the five-man field for Wesleyan as Eric Cooper (Culloden) (68th - 34:26) and Michael O’Flaherty (Freehold, N.J.) (71st - 34:34) also scored championship points.

The women were once again led by the senior trio of Missy Spanlger (Pennsboro) (39th - 23:15), Stephanie Hatfield (Clarksburg) (42nd - 23:16), and Leah Erenrich (Morgantown) (59th - 23:53). Following closely behind were senior Danielle Painter (Fenelton, Pa.) (66th - 24:00) and junior Amanda Griffith (Cumberland, Md.) (72nd - 24:15).

The three men’s teams advancing from the east region are Edinboro, Lock Haven (Pa.), and Shippensburg (Pa.). The women’s east region representatives are Edinboro (Pa.), Indiana University of Pa. and Kutztown (Pa.).

Three WVIAC women's cross country teams are listed in the final regular season East Region poll. Conference champion West Virginia Wesleyan holds down the sixth spot, followed by Alderson-Broaddus and Charleston in seventh and eighth, respectively. No. 5 Alderson-Broaddus, the WVIAC champion, and No. 7 West Virginia Wesleyan are the league's ranked teams on the men's side.

Most league teams are participating in this weekend's East Regional meet hosted by Lock Haven University in Pennsylvania. Saturday's action starts with the women's race at 11:00 a.m. The men's meet follows at 12:00 noon. Regional details and results can be found at:
http://www.lhup.edu/xcountry/2005divisioniieastregionxc.htm

East Women
1. Edinboro
2. Bloomsburg
3. Kutztown
4. Indiana University of Pa.
5. Mansfield
6. West Virginia Wesleyan
7. Alderson Broaddus
8. Charleston
9. Shippensburg
10. Clarion

East Men
1. Lock Haven
2. Edinboro
3. Shippensburg
4. Slippery Rock
5. Alderson Broaddus
6. Indiana Univ. of Pa.
7. West Virginia Wesleyan
8. Bloomsburg
9. Clarion
10. East Stroudsburg

PIPESTEM, W.Va.—West Virginia Wesleyan women’s cross country narrowly defeated heavily favored Alderson-Broaddus by two points (37-39) to win their fourth consecutive WVIAC Championship. The Lady ‘Cats have won 10 of the last 11 West Virginia Conference titles.

In the men’s race the Bobcats finished runner-up to first-place Alderson-Broaddus, but well ahead of third-place Concord.

A-B’s Heather McDaniel (19:33.62) was the women’s individual winner. She finished eight seconds ahead of Wesleyan’s Stephanie Hatfield (Clarksburg) (19:41.15). Missy Spangler (Pennsboro) (19:42.73) placed third for the Lady Bobcats and Leah Erenrich (Morgantown) (19:47.25) came in fifth.

Allison Teter (Washington) (20:35.80) and Amanda Griffith (Cumberland, Md.) (20:40.62) rounded out the ladies top five finishing 13th and 14th, respectively.

The women’s title gives head coach Jesse Skiles his 35th conference championship. Skiles was also named women’s Coach of the Year. He has now won the individual honor 26 times for either cross country or track.

Teter’s impressive season earned her Freshman of the Year accolades. Her highest finish came on Sept. 10 when she placed 11th at the Mountain State Forest Festival in Elkins.

Heather McDaniel was voted the conference’s Runner of the Year.

Wesleyan’s Eric Cooper (Culloden) (3rd - 27:05.40) and Jason Gurney (Tiffin, Ohio) (4th - 27:06.80) helped lead the Bobcats to a second-place finish in the men’s race.

They were followed by Jarren Morlan (Gassaway) (9th - 27:32.35) and Justin Rogers (Milton) (13th - 28:07.17).

Craig Gemberling of Alderson-Broaddus gave the Battlers a sweep of the individual titles by placing first with a time of 26:57.89. Gemberling was also named Runner of the Year.

A-B swept the men’s awards as Ryan Scotniki (2nd - 26:57.89) was named Freshman of the Year and Jim Seaton took home the Coach of the Year award.

Wesleyan now travels to the NCAA East Region meet at Lock Haven University (Pa.) on Saturday, November 5. The top three teams and top two individuals from a non-qualifying team will advance to the nationals.

BUCKHANNON W.Va.—West Virginia Wesleyan cross country swept the Bobcat Classic on the strength of top three finishes in both the men’s and women’s races last Friday at the Buckhannon Alliance Church.

Wesleyan dominated the field in both meets, winning the women’s team title by 51 points over Ohio Valley and claiming the men’s title by 49 points over Concord.

Both teams placed seven runners in the top 10. Senior Jason Gurney (Tiffin, Ohio) won the men’s race with a time of 25:15. Gurney narrowly missed the course record by just one second. Fellow senior Leah Erenrich (Morgantown) took home the women’s title with a time of 18:45.

Freshmen Patrick Reagan (Masontown, Pa.) (25:35) and Eric Cooper (Culloden) (25:38) continued their success along with Gurney by finishing second and third, respectively. The three runners have been the first three Bobcats to cross the finish line in all but one race this season. In that meet, the Mountain State Forest Festival back on Sep. 10., Reagan was the fourth Bobcat to finish the race.

The four other ‘Cats to finish in the top 10 were Michael O’Flaherty (Freehold, N.J.) (5th - 25:50), Jarren Morlan (Gassaway) (7th - 26:01), Justin Rogers (Milton) (9th - 26:16), and Jon Miller (Yellow Spring) (10th - 26:20). Steven Nutter (St. Mary’s) also ran strong for Wesleyan. He came in 11th place with a time of 26:27.

On the women’s side the trio of Erenrich, Stephanie Hatfield (Clarksburg) (18:49), and Missy Spangler (Pennsboro) (19:14) placed first, second, and third, respectively. In doing so, the three seniors completed the 2005 season as the top three Lady Bobcats to cross the finish line in all five races they competed in.

Amanda Griffith (Cumberland, Md./Fort Hill) (6th - 19:37), Erin Price (Procious) (7th - 19:38), Danielle Painter (Fenelton, Pa.) (8th - 19:39), and Hanna Jo Robinson (Cameron) (9th - 19:51) were the other Wesleyan women to finish in the top 10.

Stefanie Trifilo (Pepperell, Mass.) (11th - 20:18), Annie Schuerger (Charleston) (16th - 21:20), and Jill Walker (Edinboro, Pa.) (17th - 21:23) also ran competitively for the Lady ‘Cats.

Wesleyan now turns their attention to the West Virginia Conference meet on Oct. 28 at Concord University.

SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa.—West Virginia Wesleyan women placed third overall while the men came in fifth at the Slippery Rock Invitational on Saturday.

The women scored 95 points and were led by an eighth-place finish by Stephanie Hatfield (Clarksburg) (23:46) and a 15th-place finish by Leah Erenrich (Morgantown) (24:16.6).

Missy Spangler (Pennsboro) (22nd – 24:51.6), Erin Price (Procious) (24th – 25:00.5), Stephanie Trifilo (Pepperell, MA) (25:06.0), Allison Teter (Washington) (28th – 25:15.9), Amanda Griffith (Cumberland, MD) (29th – 25:17.1), and Danielle Painter (Fenelton, PA) (30th - 25.22.3) joined Hatfield and Erenrich in the top 30.

Indiana University of Pennsylvania won the women’s race with 28 total points. IUP placed three runners in the top five, including race winner, Mindy Sawtelle (22:31.2), and runner-up, Nicole Blaesser (22:57.0).

Eric Cooper’s (Culloden) ninth place finish and Jason Gurney’s (Tiffin, OH) 10th place finish helped the ‘Cats grab fifth place on the men’s side with 98 total points.

Shippensburg University won the men’s race as five Raiders finished in the top 15, including the fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-place finishers. Jorge Medina of Indiana University of PA won the individual title coming in at 25:25.5.

Freshmen Pat Reagan (Masontown) (22nd – 27:22.2), Michael O’Flaherty (Freehold, NJ) (31st – 27:44.8), and Jarren Morlan (Gassaway) (39th – 28:06.2) were the remaining Bobcats to score points.

The ‘Cats get set to host the Bobcat Classic this Friday, October 14th, at the Buckhannon Alliance Church. The open race begins at 4:00 p.m. followed by the college race at 4:30 p.m. This meet was originally scheduled for Saturday, October 15th, but was changed in late September.

Freshman Erin Price (Procious, WV) has been named the WVIAC Women’s Cross Country Runner of the Week.

Price placed eighth in this weekend’s Ohio Invitational with a time of 19:51.00. Her second top-ten finish in the past two weeks helped the women garner the team title.

Earlier this season Price won the Concord University meet with a time of 21:20.53.

ATHENS, Ohio—West Virginia Wesleyan’s women’s cross country team won their second meet in a row on Saturday as they ran past both host Ohio University and WVIAC contender, Alderson-Broaddus, in the Ohio Invitational.

Wesleyan placed nine runners in the top 20 including a trio of seniors in the top five.
Stephanie Hatfield (Clarksburg) (19:02), Missy Spangler (Pennsboro) (19:30), and Leah Erenrich (Morgantown) (19:32) finished Saturday’s meet third, fourth, and fifth, respectively.

The women’s individual champion was Ohio University’s Andrea Maas. Maas finished the meet with a time of 18:22.

Freshman Erin Price (Procious) (19:51) had a strong showing as well. Price finished eighth and was followed by Amanda Griffith (Cumberland, MD) (11th – 20:16), Allison Teter (Mineral Wells) (12th – 20:20), and Danielle Painter (Fenelton, PA) (13th – 20:25).

The remaining two Lady ‘Cats in the top 20 were Stefanie Trifilo (Pepperell, MA) (15th – 20:49) and Hanna Jo Robinson (Cameron) (18th – 21:01).

In the men’s 8k run, Eric Cooper (Culloden) led Wesleyan to a third place finish overall by finishing fifth individually with a time of 26:26.

Ohio University won the men’s team title and Robert Morris University’s Mike Booth won the men’s individual title (26:05).

Joining Cooper in the top ten was fellow freshman Pat Reagan (Uniontown, PA). Reagan completed the course in 26:33 for an eighth place finish.

Senior Jason Gurney (Tiffin, OH) (26:44) and freshman James Kavaliauskas (Clementon, NJ) (27:07) also ended their afternoon in the top 20. Gurney finished 11th and Kavaliauskas finished 14th.

Wesleyan takes a weekend off before returning to action on October 8 at Slippery Rock University (PA).

Freshman Eric Cooper (Culloden) has been selected as the WVIAC Men’s Cross Country Runner of the Week.

On Friday, September 16, Cooper put on a strong showing by placing seventh in the 7,700 meter Virginia Tech Invitational. He finished the race in an impressive 25:23.46.

In his first collegiate meet back on September 10, Cooper placed second (27:46.90) at the 8k Mountain State Forest Festival in Elkins.

ATHENS, W.Va.–The West Virginia Wesleyan women’s cross country team (1:52:12.31) defeated host Concord and Davis & Elkins to win the Concord University Cross Country Meet on Sunday.

Wesleyan’s Erin Price (Procious) was the race’s overall winner. The freshman ran the 5k in 21:20.53.

Finishing right behind Price in second place was Hannah Jo Robinson (Cameron) with a time of 21:39.54.

Jill Walker (Edinboro, PA) (5th - 22:45.64) Annie Schuerger (Charleston) (8th - 23:11.68) and Caitlin Boggs (Spencer) (9th - 23:14.92) all placed in the top ten as well.

On the men’s side, the ‘Cats third-place finish (2:32:35.19) was led by senior Steven Nutter (St. Mary’s). Nutter crossed the line in ninth place with a time of 29:51.25.

The race’s overall winner was unattached runner, Ryan Kent. Kent completed the course in 28:28.29. Concord University’s Jose Schultz topped the board for the attached runners. Schultz’ second-place finish and Michael Smutko’s third-place finish helped give Concord (2:26:08.3) the men’s victory.

Following Nutter were freshman Tom Wood (Weston) and junior Dylan Drinkard (Madison). Wood came in twelfth with a time of 30:17.37 while Drinkard finished at 30:27.27.

Zach Williams (Richmond) (30:53.42) and John Natow (Wallace) (31:05.88) rounded out the race’s top half as Williams placed 18th and Natow 19th.

The Bobcats travel to Ohio University this Saturday, September 24, for Ohio University Invitational.

BLACKSBURG, Va.–In their second meet of the season, both the men’s (2:11:05.52 – 49 pts.) and women’s (1:34:03.51 – 63 pts.) cross country teams finished second at the Virginia Tech Invitational on Saturday in Blacksburg, Virginia.

The Hokies dominated both races with the women (1:27:08.22 – 15 pts.) placing eight of the top ten finishers while the men (2:05:38.19 – 16 pts.) had seven runners cross in the line in the top 10.

Tech’s David Atkiss (24:34.66) and Tasmin Fanning (17:12.91) were the men’s and women’s winners, respectively.

The only Bobcat to finish in the top 10 was freshman Eric Cooper (Culloden). Cooper came in seventh place with a time of 24:23.46.

Close behind Cooper were senior Jason Gurney (Tiffin, OH) (12th – 26:10.46) and Patrick Reagan (Uniontown, PA) (13th – 26:15.78).

On the women’s side the top finisher was Missy Spangler (Pennsboro). Spangler ran in at 18:27.05, good enough for 11th place. Leah Erenrich (Morgantown) (18:28.64) finished right behind her in 12th place.

A slew of Lady Bobcats finished in the mid-teens. Stephanie Hatfield (Clarksburg) (15th – 18:53.09), Danielle Painter (Fenelton, PA) (16th – 19:01.35), Amanda Griffith (Cumberland, MD) (17th – 19:13.38), and Allison Teter (Mineral Wells) (18th – 19:19.67) all crossed the line in the top 20.

The Bobcats are back in action on Sunday, September 18, when they travel to Concord University to take on the Mountain Lions.

ELKINS, W.Va.—West Virginia Wesleyan’s men’s (2:23:09.10 - 36 pts.) and women’s (1:49:23.24 - 34 pts.) cross country teams began the year with second-place finishes at the Mountain State Forest Festival in Elkins, West Virginia, on Saturday, September 10.

Alderson-Broaddus captured the men’s (2:21:40.20 - 22 pts.) and women’s (1:48:36.99 - 29 pts.) titles. The Battlers placed four runners in the top five in both races. A-B’s Steve Johnson (27:42.70) and defending WVIAC Individual Champion, Heather McDaniel, (20:46:44) won the men’s and women’s titles, respectively.

Senior Stephanie Hatfield (Clarksburg) (21:15.64) and freshman Eric Cooper (Culloden) (27:46.90) were runners-up in the day’s events.

Hatfield was joined in the women’s top ten by Leah Erenrich (Morgantown) (6th - 21:50.90), Missy Spangler (Pennsboro) (7th - 22:00.92), Amanda Griffith (Cumberland, MD) (9th - 22:06.05), and Danielle Painter (Fenelton, PA) (10th - 22:09.73).

Also scoring points for the Lady ‘Cats were: Allison Teter (Mineral Wells) (11th - 22:23.51), Stephanie Trifilo (Pepperell, MA) (15th - 22:51.53), and Hannah Jo Robinson (Cameron) (16th - 22:53.65).

On the men’s side all seven point-scorers finished in the top 16 as well. Freshmen Michael O’Flaherty (Freehold, NJ) (6th - 28:35.10) and Pat Reagan (Uniontown, PA) (10th - 29:00.10) along with senior Jason Gurney (Tiffin, OH) (7th - 28:42.30) finished in the top ten.

Jon Miller (Yellow Spring) (11th - 29:04.70), Josh Morlan (Gassaway) (12th - 29:06.90), and Justin Rogers (Milton) (16th - 29:32.90) were the remaining Bobcats receiving points.

The ‘Cats’ next meet takes place this Saturday, September 17, at Concord University

PRINCETON, W.VA–Alderson-Broaddus is favored in a coaches' vote to win the 2005 men's and women's WVIAC cross country championships. The Battlers were the unanimous pick on the men's side, while A-B narrowly edged West Virginia Wesleyan in voting for the women's championship.

Concord, West Virginia Wesleyan, Charleston, and Wheeling Jesuit were selected as the top challengers to Alderson-Broaddus in the men's race for the title. Charleston, Wheeling Jesuit, and Ohio Valley follow the Battlers and WVWC as contenders on the women's balloting.

This season's WVIAC championship meet is slated for October 28 at Pipestem State Park in Summers County. Concord, the event's host, is the defending men's champion. West Virginia Wesleyan won the 2004 women's championship.

2005 WVIAC Men's Cross Country Coaches' Poll:
1. Alderson-Broaddus (8) 88
2. Concord 78
3. West Virginia Wesleyan 72
4. Charleston 62
5. Wheeling Jesuit 54
6. West Liberty State 48
7. Davis & Elkins 44
8. Fairmont State 28
9. Glenville State 25
10. Ohio Valley 20
11. Bluefield State 9

2005 WVIAC Women's Cross Country Coaches' Poll:
1. Alderson-Broaddus (4) 73
2. West Virginia Wesleyan (3) 71
3. Charleston 63
4. Wheeling Jesuit 58
5. Ohio Valley 47
6. Davis & Elkins 37
7. Concord 36
8. Glenville State 28
9. West Liberty State 23
10. Fairmont State 17
11. Bluefield State 8