Mishawaka, IN — Friday afternoon at the Bethel College Invitational, junior Laura Harnish ran only her third-quickest time of the 2007 season.
It was good enough.
Harnish captured her second individual title of the season at the event, finishing in a time of 19:08.87, slightly more than 15 seconds ahead of the nearest competitor. Harnish won the Defiance College Invitational on Sept. 8 (click here for related article) in a time of 18:58.72.
“Laura led the entire race and pulled away from the other runners during the last half of the race,” said Doug Yoder, Goshen head coach. “She is running very consistently right now, and that is important as we head into the latter portion of our schedule.”
Unfortunately for the Leafs, Harnish’s finish could not push the team to collective success, as Goshen finished fourth out of the four teams competing. Host Bethel College (35 points) won the team event, followed by Robert Morris College (61 points), Grace College (62 points) and Goshen (73 points).
Sophomore Rachel Baker was the only other Goshen performer to finish in the top 10 at the 38-athlete event, taking home seventh place in a time of 20:34.26. Freshman Maria Byler was the next Leaf to cross the finish line, taking 20th place in a time of 21:40.44. Her finish ousted sophomore Tina Peters from the team’s number three position — a slot she had held in each of Goshen’s previous meets — as Peters finished fourth internally and 24th overall in a 21:53.09 clip.
“Rachael Baker continues to be competitive for us with a solid, seventh-place finish for the team,” Yoder said. “Many of our times were close to season bests, but we can do better collectively. We will return to practice hard in prepping for our next event.”
Friday’s meet was held at St. Patrick’s County Park. A complete list of individual and team finishes can be found by clicking here.
Goshen will next travel to the Benedictine University Eagle Invitational next Friday. Meet time for the women’s race is set for 3:30 p.m.
Goshen Individual Results
Laura Harnish (1st) — 19:08.87
Rachael Baker (7th) — 20:34.26
Maria Byler (20th) — 21:40.44
Tina Peters (24th) — 21:53.09
Michelle Miller (29th) — 23:19.06
Renee Miller (31st) — 23:43.79
Tessa Horst (34th) — 24:08.71
Marie Shank (28) — 26:23.06
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Junior Laura Harnish