VERNON HILLS, Ill. - Freshman Daniel Zelaya (Elkhart, Ind.) won his second-consecutive event as the Maple Leafs men again looked strong just days after receiving a vote in the NAIA national poll for the first time in program history.
"The men's race was a little messed up by some of our runners going 300 meters less and many others running 300 meters extra," said head coach Doug Yoder. "Our first three runners were led incorrectly by the bicycle guiding the runners so their times were a little faster than they should be, but it did not impact the strong finishing order of the race."
Maple Leaf men finished first (Zelaya, 25:18.0), third (Jordan Smeltzer, 25:23.0), and fifth (Billy Funk, 26:04.0) in another strong team performance. Team scores were not tabulated in the men's event due to the error.
"Daniel out-kicked the second-place runner in the last 200 meters to win the race," Yoder continued. "Jordan and Billy were also outstanding. Our four through eight runners should actually have finished higher in the overall results, but ended up running 300 meters extra. If team scored would have been kept, we would have clearly won the race. This was an outstanding team effort again."
Included in the competition were NCAA DI institutions Northwestern University and University of Illinois - Chicago as well as a pair of NAIA's (Illinois Tech and Robert Morris University) who have appeared in the national polls this season.
Also for the men, sophomore Oscar Joses Kirwa placed 12th (28:30), Jake GunderKline was 14th (28:32), and Andrew Witkowski 16th (28:36).
On the women's side, the Maple Leafs finished sixth out of 14 teams including several NCAA DI teams. Sophomore Jenica Cornett (Goshen, Ind.) was the top finisher for Goshen at 20:55.0, while classmate Audrey Thill finished 42nd (21:39), senior Leah Thill was 46th (21:55) and junior Alita Yoder 48th (21:58).
"The women's team ran short-handed today, so I was very happy with our sixth place finish," Yoder added. "We have a great pack of two to five runners. It was good to have Alita Yoder back for the first time this season. We are improving and will continue to do so."
Both teams will be back in action on October 7 at the Bethel College Invitational, which will be a great test with several of the top Mid-Central College Conference programs in attendance.
COMPLETE RESULTS
GOSHEN MEN'S FINISHERS
1. Daniel Zelaya - 25:18
3. Jordan Smeltzer - 25:23
5. Billy Funk - 26:04
12. Oscar Joses Kirwa - 28:30
14. Jake GunderKline - 28:32
16. Andrew Witkowski - 28:36
23. Dietrich Alderfer - 28:56
32. Alejandro Rodriguez - 29:18
36. Brock GunderKline - 29:28
44. David Horst - 29:40
46. Moses Kaelo - 29:41
47. Tijs Buskermolen - 29:44
68. Oscar Renteria-Amaro - 30:43
80. Kolton Nay - 31:36
82. Nick Handrich - 31:53
96. Mitchell Brickson - 33:14
101. Yohaan Varghese - 34:05
105. Barrett Donna - 34:46
106. Connor Bontrager - 35:11
GOSHEN WOMEN'S FINISHERS
23. Jenica Corbett - 20:55
42. Audrey Thill - 21:39
46. Leah Thill - 21:55
48. Alita Yoder - 21:58
69. Becca Augsburger - 23:08
84. Lydia Alderfer - 23:50
109. Karina Kreider - 26:32
