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Photo courtesy of calvin.edu

The women’s cross-country team, ranked No. 1 in D-III, finished with the best possible score.

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Photo courtesy of calvin.edu

The 2009 men’s and women’s cross-country teams became the first in MIAA history to both achieve a perfect score of 15. By doing this, both teams secured the MIAA championship.

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Fans of Calvin cross-country are accustomed to success, especially success in the MIAA. They have witnessed the men’s and women’s teams string together victories year after year in the conference. Yet this year’s cross-country teams managed Saturday to outdo their predecessors.

Running in the MIAA Championships at Adrian, both teams steamrolled the swampy terrain and overcame fierce winds to take conference titles in unprecedented fashion. The men and women each raced to perfect team scores of 15 points, a feat unmatched in MIAA history at the conference meet.

The top-ranked women’s team entered as the heavy favorite, having already obtained a perfect score at the MIAA Jamboree in September.

At the gun, the Knights rushed into the lead, with seniors Jesi Hale and Lizz Smit leading the charge for Calvin. Senior Jess Koster, whose status coming into the meet was uncertain because of a hip injury, ran a more conservative first mile but by halfway had made her way to the leaders.

She and Hale ran together for much of the second half of the race and ultimately pulled away to clinch the individual victory, covering the muddy 6k course in a time of 22:56. Hale finished only two seconds behind in second place, and she was followed by a stream of gold.

Senior Sarah Dugan ran a strong race to finish third in a time of 23:14, and close behind her was senior Lauren Bergstrom in fourth with a time of 23:17. Lizz Smit and junior Gretchen Braymer were next for the Knights in fifth (23:26) and sixth (23:29) places respectively. Jodi Hoekstra rounded out the scorers for Calvin in ninth place in a time of 23:38.

Although the mud and wind made for a challenge on the course, the Knights were determined to use such factors to their advantage.

“Our team goals focused on making sure to get out hard and to use all the turns and muddy areas to get away from our competitors,” explained Koster, who was named MIAA Most Valuable Runner for her accomplishments at the meet. “It was a tough and muddy course on a windy day, but we made sure to not let that get to us, and we still raced with passion and determination.”

Koster was very team-focused when talking about her individual success, saying of her come-from-behind victory, “It was so great to be able to catch up to Jesi Hale and work together with her for the second half of the race.”

In the men’s race, Calvin was again out hard right from the start.

Sophomore Nick Kramer grabbed the early lead and never relinquished it, running to the individual title and MIAA Most Valuable Runner honors. Kramer crossed the line in a time of 26:53 for the 8k course.

Behind him, a sea of maroon flew to the finish line, with several notable performances. Senior Aaron Goodman came in second in a time of 27:06. Senior George Visser continued his season-long improvement and finished in third (27:20), while sophomore Dan Kerr ran an outstanding race to clinch fourth place with a time of 27:21.

Junior Alex Wrobel was not far behind in fifth, racing to a time of 27:24 and securing the perfect team score of 15 points for the Knights. Senior Kyle Mast (seventh, 27:30) and freshman Matt Vander Roest (ninth, 27:32) completed Calvin’s top seven.

Kramer highlighted the intensity with which the team approached the meet.

“It was all or nothing at this point in the season for most of the team,” he explained. “This was probably the most focused I have seen our team in a long time.”

Although he ran at the front throughout the entire race, when Kramer turned around at the finish line he was greeted by a satisfying sight.

“It was incredible to see the next group of Calvin guys come across the finish line so close together, and finishing so strong,” he said.

Kramer also recognized the long history of Calvin’s outstanding performances in the MIAA, saying, “It makes me realize the Calvin tradition that we have had the last 22 years, and how much greater this program is than any performance we could have had.”

Indeed, the men’s title was their 23rd consecutive, while the women gained their fifth straight title and 21st in the past 22 conference championships.

Kramer, Goodman, Kerr, Mast, Wrobel, Visser and Vander Roest were named to the All-MIAA First Team, while on the women’s side, Koster, Hale, Braymer, Smit, Hoekstra and sophomore Rebecca Hiemstra were selected to the First Team, and junior Allison Tuuk garnered Second Team honors.

Both teams now have a weekend off to prepare for NCAA Regionals on Nov. 14, followed by the national meet the following weekend. With focus and determination, both teams look forward to continued success in the coming meets.