Subscribe to RSSLadies cross-country runs freshmen to top 25 finishes
The NAU women’s cross-country team recently traveled to Phoenix as participates in the Grand Canyon University Invitational. The Lumberjacks took four runners to compete in the race and all four — who happened to be freshmen — placed in the top 25.
Out of the 13 local schools (including ASU and UA) that competed in the race, the Lumberjacks finished 12th overall.
Kylee Kieser led the team with a 13th place finish, clocking in at 19 minutes and seven seconds. Shayla Freeman followed right behind her with a time of 19:20. Sarah Baker placed in 17th, finishing the meet in 19:38, and Sarah Raber finished 24th with a time of 20:05. Hanna Henson, a senior from UA, claimed the number one spot with a final time of 18:04.
“We wanted them to run together through the first mile, and from there they tried to advance through the pack of runners,” said cross-country coach Eric Heins via NAU Athletics. “Kylee and Shayla did a nice job of moving up through the race and gave themselves good opportunities in order to finish in the top 15.”
Heins said that the GCU Invitational was the perfect chance for the freshmen runners to gain some experience and compete in a serious race.
“On the women’s side, we have a number of underclassmen who have the ability to contribute to our team,” Heins said, via NAU Athletics. “A couple of them were able to run in Oklahoma [last week], so we want to get the rest of them a chance to prove that they deserve a trip to Wisconsin.”
The men’s team had a break this past weekend, but both the men and women’s squads pick back up on Oct. 14th for the Adidas Wisconsin Invitational in Madison.
