Kellogg Community College issued the following announcement.
Kellogg Community College’s women’s cross country team brought home a team championship title and runners from the men’s and women’s teams brought home individual titles from the teams’ regional meet Oct. 31 in Lansing.
The women’s cross country team brought home its second regional championship in three years with a first-place finish at the National Junior College Athletic Association Region XII Division III Cross Country Championship. The win is the team’s second regional championship since the College’s men’s and women’s cross country teams began competing in the fall of 2018. (Both the men’s and women’s teams were regional champions in 2018.)
KCC freshman Hannah Wilkinson (Hillsdale/Hillsdale Academy) took individual regional championship honors with an overall first-place finish in the women’s race, followed by sophomore teammate Emma Berning (Battle Creek/Harper Creek High School) and freshman Kennedy Vanderlugt (Battle Creek/Harper Creek High School) in second and third place, respectively.
KCC freshman Brian Frazee (Watervliet/Home School) won the regional title in the men’s race, bringing KCC its third individual regional men’s title in as many years following Kyle Strong’s back-to-back regional titles in 2018 and 2019.
Head Cross Country Coach Erin Lane said runners on both teams have gotten faster and dropped their times over the past few meets, and Bruins on both the men’s and women’s side could be contenders for All-American status as the teams head to nationals later this month.
“Our entire women’s team really stepped it up this past weekend with a very strong showing at our conference and regional championships,” Lane said. “We are excited to carry this momentum heading into nationals.”
While the men’s team has been plagued by injuries that have made the College unable to field a full team, Lane said, the men’s team has seen strong individual performances and continued improvement that she expects to see continue further at the national meet.
The regional meet was held at Grand Woods Park in Lansing, and doubled as the Michigan Community College Athletic Association’s state/league championship meet. KCC’s women’s team placed third out of 11 teams in the latter, while KCC’s men’s team only ran four runners and thus couldn’t score as a team in either race.
The Bruins race next as part of the NJCAA National Championship on Saturday, Nov. 14, in Fort Dodge, Iowa. For more information about men’s cross country at KCC, visit www.kellogg.edu/mens-cross-country. For more information about women’s cross country at KCC, visit www.kellogg.edu/womens-cross-country.
Coach Lane can be reached at 269-965-4151 or crosscountrycoach@kellogg.edu.
Original source can be found here.
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