Ripon, Wis. - The 2010 Midwest Conference Championships will be held this Saturday at Gibson Woods Golf Course in Monmouth, Ill. Hosted by Monmouth College, the women’s race will begin at 11 a.m. followed by the men’s at noon.

 

Grinnell look for a repeat performance from 2009 when they swept the men’s and women’s race and look for their 43^rd combined title (26 men, 16 women). Monmouth will look to get back on track as they are the only other team to win a MWC Championship on the men’s side since 1985. St. Norbert looks to win their first women’s title since 2003 on and Carroll will try to build on last year’s runner up finish to capture their first MWC Championship.

 

For the women Monmouth and St. Norbert hold the top five performers from the regular season with 2009 runner up Jenny Scherer (SNC) holding the top performance. Mary Kate Beyer (MC), Rachel Bowden (MC), Amanda Whipple (SNC) and Alyssa Edwards (MC) round out the top five.

 

The men’s side is wide open with Monmouth’s Geoff Bird running the top 8k time of the season followed by Alex Reich (GC), Sam Stevens (LU), Jon Welty (MC) and Erik Figge (MC).

 

The Beloit men took runner up status in their own Olde English Classic as the Bucs look for their first championship since 1939. Eric Koenig has been the top runner this year for the Bucs as he holds the teams top 8k time of 27:07 at the Northern Illinois University Invitational. Koenig has been the top finisher for Beloit in every meet this season and also took home the top spot at the Olde English Classic. Greg Schalla (27:57) and Nester Zavala (28:54) also hold top times for Beloit. The Beloit women have their eye on the championship prize after season best fourth place finish at the Olde English Classic. Lauren Hall has paced the Bucs all season and finished second at the Olde English Classic while holding the Bucs top 6k time of 24:38 at the Private College Championships. Gabbie Gonzales, Claire Holdinghaus and Erika Moen round out a group that looks to improve the fifth place finish in last year’s championship.

 

Carroll’s men’s cross country team looks to crack the top five of the standings at the MWC Cross Country Championships after finishing seventh a year ago. Joe Pliner enters the championship with the eighth best 8k time in the conference (26:09) at the Brissman/Lundeen Invitational. Kevin Meyer and Joe Zambetti also finished the season in the top 40 times of the conference. Carroll women will go into this year championship without the 2009 champion, Megan O’Grady, and will lean on Kaitlyn Daugherty, who holds the seventh best 6k time in the conference (23:22). The Pioneers aim to take the top spot after a runner up finish last season. Along with Daugherty (18^th in 2009 championship) the Pioneers look to Marissa Mader, Eden Frazier and Jessica Lauren (13^th in 2009 championship) to take them over the top and claim their first championship since 2000.

 

Last year Grinnell claimed their 13^th straight MWC Championship, and conference leading 26^th overall, and return a strong nucleus of players for this year’s title run. The Pioneers boast four runners ranked in the top 10 in the conference this season in Alex Reich (2nd, 25:46.9), Erik Figge (5th, 25:57.6), Shyam Deshpande (9th, 26:12.5) and Dan Krauss (10th, 26:15.8). Krauss is the defending MWC champ and a national qualifier last season. The Grinnell women narrowly edged out Carroll in the 2009 championship climbing back on top after having their four-year streak broken in 2008. Grinnell has one woman in the top 10, Hannah Colter, who ranks 6th with a season best time of 23:16.3. Maja Gamble is just out of the top 10, sitting at 11th in 23:32.2. The trio of Sarah Burnell (23:45.0), Leah Russell (24:00.2) and Catherine Bisignano (24:16.0) round out a formidable group of runners for the Pioneers.

 

After finishing 9^th in the 2009 championship the Illinois C. men set their sights on moving up in the standings in 2010. Joe Heidbreder leads the men in action supporting one of the team’s top 8k time of the season. Heidbreder ran a 27:35.0 at the Forester Invitational, finishing 34^th at the event. Brad Bloemer equaled Heidbreder’s season best time at last weekends IC Invitational to give the Blueboys a pair of runner that can challenge for top conference spots. The Lady Blue’s enter the championship also looking to improve on a 9^th place finish from a year ago. Julia Wykoff set the team’s top 6k time of the season at the IC Invite when she ran a 23:55.0, good for 12^th among the 93 runners. Emma Hudspath supports the second best time of the season for Illinois C., running a 25:09.0 at the IC Invite and looks to improve on her 29:12.6 time that she ran at last year’s championship.

 

The Prairie Fire look toward their top runner from a year ago, Ryan Maniscalco, to lead them into the 2010 championship. Maniscalco finished 31st at the championships last season and also holds Knox’s top 8k time from the regular season (26:33.0). Gabe Moreno, Sean Choate and Robert Mueller headline a young team looking to make their mark this weekend. The Prairie Fire boasts a roster that consists of only three runners that are seniors and no juniors. Knox women also bring a youthful team to the championships, only comprised of two seniors, Chloe Bohm and Helen Hapner. Bohm holds the Prairie Fire’s top 6k time this season at the IC Invitational when she ran the course in 25:40.0, finishing 40th overall. Freshman Yael Cody and sophomore Zoey Kudla are the number two and three runners for the Prairie Fire going into the 2010 championship.

 

The Lake Forest men are looking to improve on a tenth place finish in 2009. Chris Wiatr will lead the charge as he owns the top 8k time for the Foresters when he ran a career best 28:01 at the Forester Invitational. Peter Sullivan (28:51) and Evan Piermont (29:00) rank second and third on the team this season. The Forester women had another successful year as they earned top three finishes in three of their six meets. Sarah Peluse was the Foresters’ top runner this season and holds the eighth-fastest 6k time in the MWC (23:24). Peluse earned two top five finishes, , placing fifth at the Falcon Invite and second at the Forester Invitational. Erika Alto (24:32) and Ryann Freeman (24:35) both hold season best times under 25 minutes and have combined for four top-20 finishes at meets this year.

 

After moving up a spot from 2008, the Vikings look to break into the top five after finishing sixth in 2009. Sam Stevens will lead the charge for Lawrence after posting the third-fastest time of the season at the Brooks Invitational, running an 8k time of 25:52. The tandem of Curran Carlile and Stevens headlines a strong team entering this weekend and they have been the top runners for Lawrence in every meet this season. The Vikings other top performers this season have been David Zane and Thomas Coben, which round out a strong team for the championship run. Emily Muhs headlines a young roster that only consists of one senior and two juniors at this year’s championship. Muhs has run the top 6k time for the Vikings this season at the Brooks Invitational when she posted a 23:59 in the field of almost 500 runners. Anne Sullivan and Alyssa Herman also have posted top times for the Viking women this season as they look to improve on last year’s seventh-place finish.

 

Monmouth’s men and women may be peaking at the right time. Both squads set school record pack times in their final meet before the Midwest Conference Championships. Geoff Bird has been the Fighting Scots’ most consistent runner on the men’s side and holds the top 8k time of the season in the entire conference (24:54). The senior leads a group that is trying to break their string of three straight third-place finishes and move up in the standings after winning the league title in 2006. Bird and junior Jon Welty earned all-conference honors last season. Monmouth’s women return two all-conference performers from last year’s third-place team. Senior Mary Kate Beyer and sophomore Rachel Bowden have been the Scots’ top two runners the entire season and are bolstered by a strong pack that is beginning to hit their stride. The Scots won the women’s crown two years ago and may have the talent to challenge again in 2010.

 

After a second place finish in the 2009 championships the Red Hawks look for their first ever MWC Cross Country championship in 2010. In five races this season the Red Hawks have posted two wins and two runner up finishes. Jason Smith has had top five finishes in four of the five meets and was the champion of the Ripon Invitational. Smith also holds the team’s top 8k time of 26:45, while Ben Worcester (26:50) and Michael Dussault (26:51) hold the second and third fastest, respectively. The Ripon women’s team has also finished in the top five in four of their five matches, winning the Ripon Invitational. Grace Winter won the Ripon Invitational and also holds the top 6k time of the season at the Concordia (Wis.) Invitational when she ran a 24:29. Michelle Matter and Nikki Weichbrod also have been top runners for the Red Hawks and have both finished in the top three for Ripon in each meet.

 

The St. Norbert men attempt to improve on a fourth place finish from last season and claim their first championship in school history when they travel to Monmouth, Ill this weekend. The Green Knights have post two first place finishes this season in the Northern Illinois Huskie Open and Wisconsin Private Invitational. Alex DeVillers holds the top time for St. Norbert entering the championship when he ran the 8k course at the Brissman/Lundeen Invitational in 26:19.9. Alex Kimble and Seth Hawkins and Michael Dussault also give the Green Knights a strong team entering the weekend. On the women’s side the Green Knights look for their fifth MWC Championship, first since 2003. Jenny Scherer has been the top runner for St. Norbert this season as she has been unbeaten in all five meets this season, most recently setting a new record at Private College Championship. Scherer’s 6k time of 21:09.6 is tops in the conference this year as she looks to improve from last year’s runner up finish. St. Norbert has three other runners in the top 12 of the conference’s honor roll: Amanda Whipple (23:13.6), Carrie Trina (23:26.4) and Kelsey Timm (23:37.9) to give the Green Knights a strong squad for the championships.