FINAL RESULTS
ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – After a full two weeks off, both Otterbein cross country units got back into action on Saturday afternoon with another out-of-state trip to compete in the Augustana Inter-Regional Invite.
The event featuring varsity and "open" races on both the men's (8K) and women's (6K) sides, was held once again at Saukie Golf Course
.
Otterbein landed finishes around the midway point in both varsity races, as the men took 22nd of 43 competing schools and the women settled 26th of 42 on their side.
MEN'S HIGHLIGHTS:
As he's done most of the fall, senior
John Nice sparked the men's lineup by taking 44th individually in the deep field of 453 total runners. The future engineer made the trip in 25:25 with an average pace of 5:07 per mile.
Payne Ratliff was next in line for the Cards as he continues seeing an uptick in his young career, navigating the course in 26:00 flat to cross 108th.
Rising athletic trainer
Christopher Pinnick came in third for the Cards at 142nd overall, posting an effort of 26:16 in what was a very bunched-up group.
Ian Clevinger (26:25) also scored nicely for the Cards while freshman
Corey Rafferty was less than 10 seconds behind.
Chase Jackson (26:38) and
Jay Figgins (26:42) both secured upper-half finishes as well to complete the scoring/top-seven group.
National power North Central won the event as a team and UW-Whitewater standout Christian Patzka won the race at 24:19, one second ahead of James Settles from Colorado College.
WOMEN'S HIGHLIGHTS:
Veteran
Abby Sidloski paced the Cardinals with nearly a Top-100 finish, going around the course in 23:52 to eventually land 105th in the field of 394 competitors. She averaged 6:25 per mile.
Kat Wilt (126th) continued gaining reps and college experience as the second Otterbein runner to finish, chalking up 24:04 in a cluttered group that saw 13 runners cross within five seconds of one another.
Ragen Harting (24:26) earned an upper-half finish herself while
Alyssa Mattis (25:04) and
Mackenzie Davis (25:07) rounded out the top-five grouping practically together. Davis, a grad student, was making her first appearance in more than a month after injuries to begin the year.
Josey Johnson and
Angela Maio rounded out the Otterbein top-seven lineup.
University of Chicago won the team standings, led by their standout/individual winner Evelyn Battles-Gunkel.
LOOKING AHEAD:
The annual Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Championships now loom in two more weeks, hosted this time around by Ohio Northern. Both races will take place come the morning of October 28 at Hillcrest Golf Club in Findlay.
