FINDLAY - The Otterbein women's cross country team placed third of 10 teams at the Ohio Athletic Conference Championships on Saturday, posting its best OAC finish since 2019 as three Cardinals earned All-OAC recognition.

The Basics

• Hosted by Heidelberg, the 6K OAC Championships meet was held at Hillcrest Golf Club in Findlay, Ohio.
• Full Results
• The first 10 individuals earned All-OAC First Team recognition, and the next 10 individuals earned All-OAC Second Team recognition. Only the top seven finishers from each team are eligible for All-Conference honors.
• This meet served as the Battle for the Oar rivalry competition between Otterbein and Capital. By finishing ahead of Capital (sixth) in the team standings, Otterbein retains the Oar trophy.

Race Results

• The Cardinals scored 79 points and placed third of 10 teams.
• John Carroll won the OAC team title with 42 points. Ohio Northern placed second with 65 points, and Mount Union placed fourth with 81 points.
• Wilmington's Faith Duncan won the individual OAC title, running a time of 19:49.

• Sophomore Sarah Scarborough led the way for the Cardinals, placing second in the 125-woman field with a time of 21:24 to earn First Team All-OAC honors. 
• Freshman Brenna Lay finished 10th in 22:27 to earn First Team All-OAC honors. 
• Senior Alyssa Mattis finished 14th in 22:37 to earn Second Team All-OAC honors. 
• Sophomore Kierstin Knell finished 24th in 23:17.
• Junior Lauren Gram finished 37th in 23:53.5. 
• Sophomore Ava Stratmann finished 38th in 23:53.6.
• Freshman Maggie Poor finished 39th in 23:55.

Quote

• Head coach Matt Sutton: "This continues to be a special year for our women. They have created an environment where they can make each other better day in and day out. The race today showed that. They have improved tremendously from last year and over the course of this season."

Notables

• Scarborough, Lay, Mattis, Knell, Gram and Poor posted personal-best times for a 6K race. 
• Otterbein improved two spots from their fifth-place finish at the 2023 OAC Championships. The third-place finish was the Cardinals' best since finishing third in 2019.