November 2, 2013
Grove City rolls to conference title
GIBSONIA, Pa. -- The Grove City College women's cross country team captured its 25th straight Presidents' Athletic Conference title Saturday by earning a mere 33 points at the conference championships, hosted by Chatham University. Grove City placed 10 runners in the top 25, helping the Wolverines easily outdistance runner-up Waynesburg (75 points).
Sophomore Emily Rabenold (Allison Park, Pa./Hampton) helped lead the Wolverines by winning the conference's individual title. She covered the rugged six-kilometer course in 21 minutes, 45.6 seconds. Rabenold won the race by a full minute over Geneva's Alayna Merkle.
Sophomore Stevie Houston (Greensburg, Pa./Latrobe) and senior Laurel Skorup (Sandwich, Ill./Sandwich) joined Rabenold on the conference's First Team. Houston placed fourth in a time of 22:59.4 while Skorup finished seventh in 23:15.6.
Three Grove City runners earned Second Team All-PAC recognition. Sophomore Lydia Hogan (Lutherville, Md./Redeemer Classical Christian) finished ninth (23:27.80) while junior Kara Cremean (Vermilion, Ohio/Vermilion) earned 12th with a time of 23:29.9. Senior Austin Powell (Shamong, N.J./Seneca) came home 13th with a time of 23:33.6.
Junior Caroline Kimpel (Columbiana, Ohio/Columbiana) took 17th (23:56.9) while senior Grace Postma (New Berlin, Wis./New Berlin West) finished 22nd in 24:08.5. Freshman Kellen McGann (Suffield, Conn./Suffield) took 24th (24:31.3), one place ahead of senior Cayla Clawson (York, Pa./Central York). Clawson finished 25th in 24:33.0.
Head coach Sean Severson earned the conference's Coach of the Year award.
Rabenold is the first Grove City runner to earn medalist at the conference championships since Sara Fisher in 2009.
Grove City will compete in the NCAA Mideast Championships November 16 at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa.