Cross country clutches two school records

Women’s cross country wrapped up its season with a strong finish at both the Peach Belt Conference Championships on Oct. 22 and the NCAA Southeast Regionals on Nov. 5.

The Bobcats led GC to a seventh place finish with 147 points at the PBC Championships at USC Aiken, where sophomore Allison Lones earned the prestigious All-PBC Second Team honors for her 11th place overall finish of the 6k course.

 “When we start training in the summer, the PBC Championships are what we’re training for,” Lones said. “It felt really good to lead the Bobcats at the race that matters, but the pressure was definitely on.”

Lones completed the course in only 24:19, garnering first place for the Bobcats.

Senior Victoria Dobson placed 29th with a time of 25:26, while sophomore Ashton Passino and senior Karissa Ekstrom placed 33rd and 34th, respectively.

Freshman newcomer Rebecca Shane, finished 40th in her first PBC Championships race in 26:14.

On Nov. 5, the Bobcats ventured to the last race of the season, the NCAA Southeast Regionals meet held at McAlpine Park in Charlotte, N.C.

Prior to the race, Lones reflected on the team’s training for the meet.

“A lot of preparation has gone into this race,” Lones said. “I would like to finish in the top 10 and have everyone pleased with their times. I don’t want any of the girls to have regrets when it comes to the last race of the season.”

Out of the 26 teams that competed, the Bobcats placed 13th with 346 points at the Southeast Regionals. Out of all of the teams that competed from the Peach Belt Conference, GC finished sixth out of the nine PBC teams.

With her 23:08 finish on the 6k course, Lones surpassed her previous school record of 24:00 while simultaneously becoming the first All-Region performer ever for GC women’s cross country.

Seniors Ekstrom and Dobson both placed strongly in their final race as Bobcats, with Ekstrom placing 73rd with a time of 24:21 and Dobson placing close behind in 80th with a time of 24:26.

Rounding out the Bobcats’ finishers were freshman Rebecca Shane, placing 89th with a time of 24:43, and sophomore Madeline McCane, completing the race in 24:51 and placing 94th.

Although the Bobcats’ 2011 campaign has come to a successful end, the team continues to thrive on the accomplishments and morale gained throughout the season.

“I’ve really enjoyed the season,” Lones said. “The girls on the team are awesome – it’s more  than being together and pushing each other at practice. We are always there for each other.”

As the women’s cross country team bids goodbye to seniors Emily Cary, Ekstrom and Dobson, the remainder of the team is already motivated and hopeful for the 2012 season.

“My goal is to get better every year,” Lones said. “Our team has freshmen who will come back a lot stronger next year. You can tell that they definitely want it.”

Posted by Lindsay Shoemake on Nov 10 2011. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.