Grand Rapids, Mich. – The Carroll Cross Country Saints competed at another loaded NAIA Great Lakes Challenge on Saturday October 24 in Grand Rapids, Mich.

 

The No. 22 women placed 11th, beating multiple teams that have been receiving votes in the national polls. The RV men placed 20th.`

 

Ryah O'Dell was the first finisher for the women in 52nd followed shortly by Jayna Boonstra in 53rd. The women ran a tight overall team race with only 33 seconds separating 1st-5th. Conrad Schruth was the top placer for the men in 38th, while Oliver Morris came 2nd in 61st.

 

There were multiple records across the group. The race was a lifetime best (or equal to) for Schruth, Faye Holland, Scotty McIntyre, Eli Highness, and Harper Churape. It was a 2026 cross country best for O'Dell, Boonstra, Morris, Ruthanne Arthun, Jack Jensen, Wyatt Ehredt, and Luke Decker. Audrey VanWestrienen ran her fastest time ever for 5k cross country in college.

 

"We were proud of how both teams executed their plans today and hit a lot of our process goals," said Head Coach Shannon Flynn. "There was great energy within our packs, and we believe that contributed to some stellar individual performances too," she added. "In terms of the team, we'll be hoping to take both positives and learnings forward to the post-season coming up soon."

 

The Saints will race again in 2 weeks at the Frontier Conference Championships in Billings, Mont. Races will kick off at Amend Park at 10:30 am on Friday November 6.

 

Full results are available at this LINK.

 

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