ATHENS, Ohio – Brooke Valentine (Waukesha, Wis./Waukesha West) led the way with a time of 22:20.3 for the Northern Illinois University women's cross country team at the Mid-American Conference Championship on Saturday morning (Oct. 29) at the Ohio University Golf Course.
"Brooke (Valentine), running 22:20 was a 29-second season's best and it was only about five seconds off her PR from a couple of seasons ago," said NIU head coach Jamie Moreno. "The MAC has gotten a lot faster than it has been, Brooke went out in about 65th (place) through the first kilometer and moved up about 15 spots throughout the race. She led us in every meet this season and I thought she had a pretty solid race.
"Joy (Jackson) had a 32-second, six-kilometer PR. She went out in about 97th (place) after the first kilometer, so she moved up the entire race. Brooke and Joy, like most weeks, were a pretty solid one-two for us."
Valentine's time gave her a finish just outside the top-50. Joy Jackson (North Aurora, Ill./Benet Academy) ran her best time of the season by nearly a minute, finishing in 22:41.2, to take 65th as the Huskies as a team finished 12th in the meet.
Emma Vorpagel (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead) missed her season-best 6K time by just five seconds, running 25:16.7. Julia Finegan (Palatine, Ill./Fremd) was also not far off her season-best, running 25:40.2, less than 20 seconds from her top time of the season. Olivia Southby (New South Wales, Australia/Washburn) was more than a minute faster than her season-best time as she ran 25:52.8 while Sarah McLaughlin (Rockford, Ill./Guilford) bettered her season-best 6K time by just shy of a minute, running 26:02.5.
"We only raced with six today and those have pretty much been the six that have been healthy all season," said Moreno. "The other five, we have tried to get them healthy all year, we started with three or four with injuries and they could not get through them. Like I told the girls, we weren't happy with our place, but I was happy with how they competed today, considering everything they have been through all year. It was a challenging year and I thought they persevered through it. If we had everyone healthy, the outcome would have been a little bit different, I believe, but I was pleased with the way they competed today."
Miami's Carmen Riano won the individual MAC Championship with a time of 19:30.3 while 16th-ranked Toledo claimed the team title with 29 points.
Team Standings
1. Toledo, 29
2. Ohio, 83
3. Eastern Michigan, 106
4. Miami, 126
5. Western Michigan, 127
6. Bowling Green, 138
7. Central Michigan, 161
8. Kent State, 209
9. Ball State, 253
10. Akron, 282
11. Buffalo, 292
12. NIU, 350
NIU Individuals
51. Brooke Valentine, 22:20.3
65. Joy Jackson, 22:41.2
100. Emma Vorpagel, 25:16.7
101. Julia Finegan, 25:40.2
102. Olivia Southby, 25:52.8
103. Sarah McLaughlin, 26:02.5
