COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio Dominican sophomore Meghan Willeke competed at the 30^th Annual Women's Cross Country National Championship over the weekend at Fort Vancouver Historical Site in Vancouver, Washington. Willeke, who has already etched her name in the ODU record books, became the Panthers first cross country member to qualify for the national championships in school history.  

Willeke earned a trip to the national championships after winning the Midlands/Independent Conference qualifying meet in St. Louis, Missouri. Her time of 21:17 at the independent meet qualified her as an individual at the national championships on November, 21^st. The Lexington, Ohio native finished with a time of 21:47 to come in 280^th out of 330 runners on the national stage.  more

California State-San Marcos won its first ever NAIA Women's Cross Country National Championships by a narrow margin of three points over second-place Biola (Calif.) (137 points to 140 points). The Cougars took third-place in the 2008 event. The Cascade Collegiate Conference and Concordia (Ore.) University hosted the event for the first time.

The Cougars posted three runners in the top 30 including seventh-place finisher Dallon Williams (18:20). The team title is the first national championship in the 10-year history of the school. In the 30-year history of the event, Cal State-San Marcos becomes the 16^th team to win the title and the 12^th program to capture the championship for the first time.

Following Biola in third-place was Malone (Ohio) with 163 points and Simon Fraser (B.C.) with 195 points. Defending national champion Azusa Pacific (Calif.) took home fifth-place honors with 199 points.

Justyna Mudy of Shorter (Ga.) was the individual medalist with a finish of 17:30. The junior took third in last year's event and defeated the next runner, Jacky Kipwambok of Azusa Pacific (Calif.), by 21 seconds. Mudy becomes the first Shorter athlete to win the women's individual title in the school's history.

Ohio Dominican head coach Paul Benedict, in just his second year at the helm of the Panthers cross country team was named the Midlands/Independent Conference Coach of the Year.  

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio Dominican cross country made history over the weekend as the women's team earned their first team title and sophomore Meghan Willeke took second place in the Midlands/Independent Conference qualifying meet in St. Louis, Missouri.  

The Panthers, competing in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletic (NAIA) for the last time, saved their best for last as they posted a team score of 38 points edging out the field of five to earn the team title. Ohio Dominican had three runners finish in the top 10 and seven runners finish in the first 20 spots in the meet.     more

Willeke (Lexington, OH) led the way with a time of 21:17 and will be the first Panther to qualify for the cross country Nationals in school history. Willeke, the Panthers school record holder, will advance as an individual to the NAIA National Championship held in Vancouver, Washington on November 21^st.  

Elyse Wyant (Jr./Chillicothe, OH) finished sixth with a time of 22:12 and Hali Cassidy (Fr./Portsmouth, OH) came in seventh with a time of 22:25. Rounding out the top finishers for the Panthers was Ali Green (So./Cincinnati, OH) at 13^th  with a time of 22:53 and Stephanie Elliotts (Sr./Hillsboro, OH) placed 15th with a time of 23:35 a personal best. Stacey Woeste (Sr./Melbourne, KY) finished 18^th and Courtney Rizek (So./Westerville, OH) 22^nd.  

On the men's side, ODU battled through some late season injuries to finish 8^th overall at the Conference meet. McKendree University edged William Woods for the team title with a total of 33 points. ODU accumulated 207 points in their final meet as a NAIA member.

The Panthers Brian Litt (So./Mansfield, OH) was Ohio Dominican top performer as he came in 36^th overall with a time of 30:48.           

COLUMBUS, Ohio – For the second straight season the Ohio Dominican men's and women's cross country team had their best performance at the Wilmington Fall Classic. Led by a record setting performance by sophomore Meghan Willeke the Panthers turned in a team best performance of the season.

Willeke (Lexington, OH) running in what has to be her favorite race of the season broke her own school record of 21:24, set at the Wilmington Fall Classic last season, with a time of 21:03. Willeke finished 60^th overall in the event.  The Panthers women's team finished 18^th overall with a total of 507 points. ODU saw eight of their nine participants finish with personal bests, including Elise Wyant (Jr. /Chillicothe, OH) with a time of 21:39 and Addie Shough (Fr. /Columbus, OH) who finished at 23:55.  more

Earning the team title was John Carroll University who recorded a total of 85 points in the 5k run. Heather Waterman of Franklin College turned in the best time at 18:38 .

On the men's side ODU had four of their five runners record personal best times while finishing 20^th overall in the largest field of the season. The Panthers earned a total of 587 points in the 8k run. Leading the way for Ohio Dominican was junior Josh Watson (Reynoldsburg, OH) with a time of 29:12. Brian Litt (So. /Mansfield, OH) had a breakout performance on the course as he recorded a personal best time of 29:13. Eric Rauschenbach (Fr. /Struthers, OH) also ran a personal record finishing with a time of 30:00.

Earning the team title in the 8k run was the University of Rio Grande. The Panthers former conference rivals turned in a team point total of 89 to earn the victory. Rio Grande 's Bryce Wilson and Nick Wilson came in first and second with times of 25:19 and 25:38.

ODU will return to action in their final meet of the season in the Unaffilicated Conference Meet on Saturday, November 7^th in Saint Louis, Missouri.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio Dominican men's and women's cross country teams traveled to Westerville, Ohio for the Otterbein Cross Country Invitational over the weekend. The Panther men's team earned their second straight 13^th place finish in the 8,000 meters, while the women also came in 13^th in the 5,000 meter race.

Mount Union College earned the team title for the men as they finished with a total score of 59. The Raiders placed three runners in the top 10 and just edged DePauw University who finished with a total of 63 points. Heidelberg University came in third as they posted a score of 79 points.      more

ODU came in 13^th for the second straight meet as they collected a total of 421 points. The men saw a pair of freshman have breakout performances with Eric Raushenbach (Fr., Struthers, OH) and Josh Weitz (Fr., Dayton, OH) posting personal records. Raushenbach came in 89^th overall with a time of 31:25.7. Weitz was right on his heels with a 94^th place finish and a time of 32:13.0.   Leading the way for the Panthers was Josh Watson (Jr., Reynoldsburg, OH) with a time of 29:17.0

In the 5,000 meter women's race DePauw University was crowned the champions as they posted a team score of 29 points. The host Cardinals came in second with a team score of 69, followed by the College of Wooster with a team score of 104.

ODU earned their best performance of the season placing 13^th overall, while combining for 364 points. Leading the way was ODU record holder Meghan Willeke (So, Lexington, OH) with a time of 26:15.3 good for 54^th place. Panther freshman Hali Cassidy (Fr., Portsmouth, OH) finished with a time of 26:43.7, while newcomers Kaitlin McNeish (So., Newark, OH) and Addie Shough (Fr., Columbus, OH) each ran personal bests of 30:39.3 and 30:39.7, respectively. Courtney Rizek (So., Westerville, OH) also had a good day as she bettered her fastest time by nearly two minutes with a time of 29:55.6.

The Panthers return to action this Friday, October 2^nd as they head to the All-Ohio Invitational hosted by Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio.