ROMEOVILLE, ILL. – For the 23
rd and 22
nd consecutive seasons, Grand Valley's women's and men's cross country teams have claimed the NCAA DII Midwest Region Championship titles. The Lakers were crowned champions at Lewis University in Romeoville, Ill. on Saturday, Nov. 9.
As winners of the Midwest Regional title, both squads automatically qualified to compete at the NCAA DII National Championships in Sacramento, Calif.
"Both squads executed race plans perfectly, racing controlled early on and progressing over the second half of the race," said Head Coach
Jerry Baltes.
All seven of the Laker men finished in the top 20, collecting 40 points for a championship finish.
Caleb Futter and
Koby Fraaza led the Lakers, finishing second and third at 30:54.34 and 30:54.87. The duo received USTFCCCA All-Region honors for their top-25 finishes.
Scott Spaanstra (10), Dan Lambert (11),
Sam Martens (14),
Brock Wooderson (19) and GLIAC Freshman of the Year
Owen Westerkamp (20) also received All-Region honors.
The Laker ladies shined in competition – six of seven finished in the top 10, all placing in the top 20 for a low score of 20 points.
Junior
Lauren Kiley took the women's individual title, crossing the finish line at 20:57.78.
Allie Arnsman followed with a second place finish at 21:16.21. A stunning finish from
Maggie O'Malley earned her fourth place (21:34.21). Abby VanderKooi (6) led the rest of the squad, followed by
Maria Mitchell (7),
Abby Olson (10) and
Annika Sandman (17). All seven earned All-Region honors for their top-25 finishes.
"We always have three goals for the NCAA Regional race: advance to the NCAA Championships, race within ourselves to come out as healthy as possible and compete for a win" said Baltes.
Grand Valley will compete for a national title on Saturday, Nov. 23 at the NCAA DII National Championships in Sacramento, Calif. The men race first in the 10k Championship Race at 10 a.m. PT. The women follow in the 6k Championship Race at 11:15 a.m. PT. More information regarding the event can be on
NCAA's championships page.
