Will and Evelyn Freeman, who have enjoyed an abundance of success as Grinnell College's cross country and track and field coaches, are featured in an article that appears in the January/February issue of Running Times magazine.
The article explains how the Freemans helped build the programs into conference and national contenders upon their arrival at the College in 1980, as well as thoughts on their roles as coaches and mentors to student-athletes.
To view the complete article
Becky Bessinger '09 (pictured) and Henry Reich '09 were recently named the Most Valuable Runners for the 2008 Grinnell College women's and men's cross country teams, respectively.
Other women winning awards were Elizabeth Jach '09 (Pioneer Award for outstanding performance, high quality of character and notable leadership), Leah Russell '11 (Most Improved Runner) and Sachi Graber '12 (Rookie Award).
Other awards on the men's side went to Sam Calisch '10 (Most Improved Runner) and Nick Sparr '09 (Purple Roo Award for outstanding performance, high quality of character and notable leadership).
Becky Bessinger '09 was the Grinnell College women's cross country team's top performer at the NCAA Central Region Meet Saturday at Oakland Acres Golf Course, as she ran the 6 kilomter race in 24:28.4 to finish 67th.
Other scorers for the Pioneers were Sachi Graber '12 (85th in 24:52.6), Leah Russell '11 (95th in 25:09.9), Hannah Colter '12 (105th in 25:22) and Elizabeth Jach '09 (116th in 25:38.7).
Bethel's Marie Borner was the champ in 21:28.1. Wartburg and Luther earned the women's automatic team berths to the NCAA meet by finishing first and second, respectively, with 92 and 95 points. Grinnell was 17th with 468.
On the men's side, four Grinnell runners earned all-region status as the Pioneers finished fourth in the team standings. The top two teams qualify for the national meet, with the rest of the NCAA field being made up of at-large qualifiers. Grinnell will learn if it is an at-large qualifier Sunday.
Grinnell finished with 167 points, 19 behind third-place St. Olaf. Nebraska Wesleyan won the meet with 130 while St. John's placed second with 139.
Grinnell was paced by Henry Reich '09, who was 20th in the 8 kilometer race in 26:12. Others earning all-region honors for the Pioneers were Sam Calisch '10, who was 27th in 26:30, David Montgomery '10, who was 33rd in 26:39.9 and Noah DeLong '11, who was 34th in 26:40.2. The Pioneers fifth scorer was Alex Reich '11, who was 53rd in 26:58.6.
The individual champ was Luther's David McKay, who finished in 25:29.2. The national meet is slated for Nov. 22 in Hanover, Ind.
Men's Results
Women's Results
Grinnell College will host the NCAA Division III Central Region Meet Saturday at Oakland Acres Golf Course. The men's event is at 11 a.m. and the women's race follows at noon.
The top two teams automatically qualify for the NCAA Meet, as do the top seven individuals from non-qualifying teams. Here is a breakdown of the meet:
MEN'S TEAM RACE
The men's team race will be a barn-burner, as four teams were ranked between 26th and 33rd prior to their respective conference meets.
Regional host Grinnell posted a perfect score of 15 en route to winning the Midwest Conference title, the Pioneers' 12th league crown in a row. The Pioneers were rated 33rd prior to their conference meet.
Four teams battled to within 21 points at the MIAC meet, with St. Olaf emerging as the winner with 75 points. Hamline won a close battle for second with 87 points and was followed by St. Thomas with 93 and Bethel with 96. St. Thomas entered the meet at the No. 26 spot nationally and St. Olaf was 27th.
Like the MIAC, the IIAC title chase was also close with Luther nipping Loras by a 48-59 margin. Coe was a close third with 67 points and was followed by Simpson at 81.
Martin Luther enters the regional meet as the UMAC champion, having beaten Northwestern by a 46-61 margin. St. Scholastica took third with 73 points.
Nebraska Wesleyan is the lone GPAC entry in the regional, but is expected to make some noise after being ranked 30th earlier this month.
MEN'S INDIVIDUAL RACE
Grinnell's perfect score at the Midwest Conference meet was led by Henry Reich, who claimed top individual honors. Rounding out the top five for the Pioneers were Sam Calisch, Noah DeLong, David Montgomery, and Nick Sparr. All five were within 31 seconds of each other.
Duboul Ruon of St. Olaf was the MIAC individual champion, defeating Martin Mudry of Macalester by 4 seconds. Rounding out the top five were Brandon Gleason of Hamline, Dan Greeno of Bethel and Dan Foley of Gustavus Adolphus. Greeno was fourth at last year's regional meet.
Brian Chenoweth of Wartburg beat David McKay of Luther by 7 seconds to take top honors at the IIAC meet. Rounding out the top five were John Fry of Loras, Brad O'Neill of Coe and Eric Osterhaus of Simpson. McKay was fifth at last year's regional meet.
Nathan Loersch of Martin Luther won the UMAC title by 7 seconds over Daniel Bare of North Central. Rounding out the top five were Jake Turman of St. Scholastica, Seth Brickley of Crown and Joel Groten of Northwestern.
Logan Watley has been Nebraska Wesleyan's top runner this season. The GPAC meet was run after the printing deadline for this program.
WOMEN'S TEAM RACE
Wartburg entered the IIAC meet ranked third in the nation, and showed the lofty standing was well-deserved as the Knights easily out-distanced runner-up Luther 28-49. Luther entered the meet ranked 30th. Loras was third with 90 points.
The MIAC meet was all it was cracked up to be, as the top three teams finished within five points of each other. St. Thomas eked out the team title with 66 points and was followed by Bethel and Carleton with 68 and 71 points, respectively. St. Thomas entered the meet ranked 14th, Bethel was 28th and Carleton 11th. Fourth-place St. Olaf was ranked 27th.
Grinnell had its string of Midwest Conference titles broken, but still managed a tie for third with St. Norbert College. Each team had 75 points.
St. Scholastica had little trouble in the UMAC meet, winning by a 23-72 margin over runner-up Northwestern. Minnesota Morris was third with 86.
Nebraska Wesleyan is the only GPAC entry in the regional, but is expected to fare well after being ranked 21st earlier this month.
WOMEN'S INDIVIDUAL RACE
Mary Bridget Corken of Loras won the IIAC individual crown, defeating runner-up Anna Kraayenbrink of Wartburg by 10 seconds. Janet Dobyns of Luther was third, followed by Rachelle Hawkins of Cornell and Emily VanOosbree of Wartburg. Dobyns won last year's regional title.
Marie Borner of Bethel cruised to the MIAC title as she defeated teammate and runner-up Alex Potter by 45 seconds. Simone Childs-Walker of Carleton was third, followed by Katie Theisen of St. Thomas and Hailey Brenden of Concordia. Borner was second at last year's regional meet and Theisen placed fourth.
Leah Russell and Maja Gamble led Grinnell at the Midwest Conference meet, placing 10th and 12th, respectively. Becky Bessinger has also been a strong runner for the Pioneers.
Katelyn Meger led a 1-3 sweep for St. Scholastica at the UMAC meet, as she defeated teammate Jessie Lovering by nearly a minute. Third went to Tara Connelly, while Mel Olson of Northwestern and Elizabeth Haasch of Martin Luther rounded out the top five.
Jackie Spelts has been Nebraska Wesleyan's top runner this season.
The Grinnell College women's cross country team placed four runners on the all-conference squad at Saturday's Midwest Conference Championships in Galesburg, Ill.
The all-conference performers were Leah Russell '11 (10th place in 24:16.09), Maja Gamble '11 (12th in 24:23.14), Sachi Graber '12 (13th in 24:25.30) and Hannah Colter '12 (18th in 24:33.65). Rounding out the top seven were Nora Colter '10 (22nd in 24:54.69), Catherine Bisignano '12 (29th in 25:20.37) and Becky Bessinger '09 (31st in 25:23.63).
Grinnell tied for third with St. Norbert College in the team standings with 75 points. Monmouth College won with 55 points and Carroll University placed second with 68.
Grinnell will host the NCAA Regional Meet on Nov. 15 at Oakland Acres Golf Course.
MWC Women's Results
Grinnell's women's cross country team garnered a 20th-place finish at the Wisconsin-Oshkosh Brooks Invitational Saturday at Lake Breeze Golf Course in Winneconne, Wis.
Leading the Pioneers was Becky Bessinger '09, who was 89th place and ran the 6 kilometer course in 23:42. She was followed by Hannah Colter '12, who was 97th in 23:47, and Maja Gamble '11, who was 99th in 23:49. Rounding out the top five were Leah Russell '11 (116th in 24:09) and Sachi Graber '12 (128th in 24:20).
Calvin won the team title with 59 points, while Marie Borner of Bethel won the individual crown in 20:37.
On the men's side, Grinnell placed ninth. The Pioneers, who had 283 team points, were led by Henry Reich '12. He finished 26th place in 25:06 over the 8 kilometer course. He was followed by David Montgomery '10, who was 47th in 25:25, and Noah DeLong '11, who was 60th in 25:33. Rounding out the top five were Sam Calisch '10 (66th in 25:38) and Ethan Heppner '11 (84th in 25:55).
North Central edged Wisconsin-Stevens Point 68-73 for the team title. Willy Kaul of Wisconsin-Oshkosh won the individual crown in 24:00.
Grinnell heads to Galesburg, Ill., on Nov. 1 to compete in the Midwest Conference Championships.
Women's Result
Click here to see cross country photo gallery
The Grinnell women's cross country team had a strong showing at Coe College's Lamb-Kohawk Invitational Saturday, placing second in an eight-team field.
The Pioneers had 75 points and were out-distanced only by the University of Northern Iowa. Leading Grinnell was Becky Bessinger '09 (pictured), who toured the 6 kilometer layout at Jones Park in 24:38.52. That was good for 11th place. She was followed by Leah Russell '11 (13th place in 24:53.95) and Hannah Colter '12 (14th place in 24:55.47).
Rounding out Grinnell's top five were Elizabeth Jach '09 (18th place in 25:20.38) and Maja Gamble '11 (19th place in 25:25.95). The individual champ was Caedryn Schrunk of Northern Iowa, who ran 21:54.16.
On the men's side, Mike Horrell '09 led the charge for Grinnell. He ran the 8 kilometer route in 27:31.33, good for eighth place. Kyle Lynch-Klarup '10 was 13th in 27:52.93 and Ian McCallum-Cook '12 took 32nd in 29:09.19. Others in the top five for the Pioneers, which didn't have their top runners compete at the meet, were Kevin Cashman '10 (47th in 30:18.06) and Joseph Hiller '12 (48th in 30:21.54).
Grinnell was fifth in the team standings with 128 points. The champ was Coe College with 39 points and Walter Bolingo of Southwestern Community College was the individual winner in 25:36.43.
The Pioneers travel to the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh next Saturday to compete in the Brooks Invitational.
Meet Results
The Grinnell College cross country teams got a chance to compete against some of the top teams in the nation Saturday, regardless of NCAA Division, and were up to the challenge when they ran at the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto, Calif.
Grinnell's men finished 19th and were led by Henry Reich '09, who was 56th individually among runners. He ran the 8 kilometer race in 26:01. David Montgomery '10 was next in line, taking 79th place in 26:29, while Noah DeLong '11 was 123rd in 27:20. Rounding out the Pioneers' top seven were Sam Calisch '10 (128th in 27:24), Alex Reich '11 (129th in 27:25), Ethan Heppner '11 (134th in 27:29) and Nick Sparr (137th in 27:31). Grinnell finished with 515 points, 31 ahead of 20th-place Pepperdine.
The Pioneer women were 31st with 929 points. Nora Colter '10 led the pack by placing 177th individually, running the 6 kilometer race in 25:14 Elizabeth Jach '09 was 184th in 25:42 and Becky Bessinger '09 took 185th in 25:45. Rounding out the field for Grinnell were Lilah Melzer '11 (190th in 26:00), Leah Russell '11 (193rd in 26:05), Sachi Graber '11 (200th in 26:19) and Hannah Colter '11 (204th in 26:32).
The Pioneers also had runners compete in Augustana College's Brissman-Lundeen Invitational on Saturday. Grinnell's men took 16th place and were paced by Paul Bellora '10, who finished 43rd in 27:07.4, and Ian McCallum-Cook '12, who took 77th in 28:06.4. The women were 18th place, as Annie Tempest '12 was the top runner. She placed 99th in 25:38.3.
Stanford Women's Results
Brissman-Lundeen Women's Meet Results
The Grinnell College men's and women's cross country teams will get their fill of excellent competition this Saturday when they compete in the Stanford University Invitational in Palo Alto, Calif.
The men's field alone includes four nationally-ranked NCAA Division I teams, including the host Cardinal, who are 11th. Other ranked teams in the men's field are California (19th), Cal Poly (21st) and Arkansas (22nd). The hosts are also ranked in the women's field as they hold down the fourth spot nationally. There are also a number of regionally-ranked teams in the field at the D-I, D-II and D-III levels. Grinnell's men are among them, plus also hold down the No. 32 spot nationally in D-III.
The Pioneer men are coming off a strong performance at the Les Duke Invitational, finishing fourth out of a 26-team field. The team was led by Midwest Conference Performer of the Week Henry Reich '09, who finished 11th with a time of 26:54. Other notable finishers were David Montgomery's '10 25th-place finish in 27:18 and Dan Krauss's '12 37th-place finish in a time of 27:42.
The women finished 19th out of 24 teams. They were paced by Catherine Bisignano '12, who finished 79th in a time of 25:29. Fellow first-year Sachi Graber '12 was the next Pioneer through the chute with an 82nd-place finish.
The Pioneers' second units will also be in action Saturday, participating in the Brissman-Lundeen Invitational hosted by Augustana College.
Catherine Bisignano '12 finished 79th to lead the way for the Grinnell College women's cross country team at the 46th Annual Les Duke Invitational Saturday morning at Oakland Acres Golf Course.
Bisignano (left) toured the 6 kilometer course in 25 minutes, 29 seconds. Next in line for the hosts was Sachi Graber '12 (right), who was 82nd in 25:34. Rounding the Pioneers' top seven were Maja Gamble '11 (88th in 25:41), Elizabeth Jach '09 (96th in 25:49), Leah Russell '11 (104th in 25:59), Hannah Colter '12 (108th in 26:04) and Nora Colter '10 (124th in 26:36).
Grinnell was 19th in the team standing with 449 points. Wartburg was the champ, beating runner-up Carleton by a 104-141 margin. The individual champ was Marie Borner of Bethel, who finished in 22:08.
The Grinnell men's cross country team made a strong showing at the meet, placing fourth among a field of 31 teams and beating a pair of nationally-ranked squads.
Henry Reich '09 led the Pioneers, placing 11th on the 8 kilometer course at Oakland Acres Golf Club. He had a time of 26:54. Next in line for Grinnell was David Montgomery '10, who was 25th in 27:18. Rounding out the Pioneers' top seven were Dan Krauss '12 (37th in 27:42), Ethan Heppner '11 (40th in 27:49), Noah DeLong '11 (41st in 27:49), Chris Wilson '11 (42nd in 27:50) and Sam Calisch '10 (43rd in 27:50).
Grinnell finished with 154 points and was just 10 behind third-place Hamline and 24 out of first. Iowa Central Community College won the tight team race with 130 points, seven in front of runner-up and No. 24 ranked Washington University. Grinnell finished ahead of both St. Olaf and Bethel, who are ranked 25th and 35th, respectively. The individual champ was Iowa Central's Stephen Dak, who had a time of 25:34.
The Pioneers' next action Saturday, Sept. 27, when the varsity teams travel to California for the Stanford Invitational and the junior varsity heads to the Brissman-Lundeen Invitational hosted by Augustana College.
Les Duke Invitational Women's Results
Les Duke Photos
The Grinnell College cross country teams both had strong starts to their 2008 campaigns, as each finished third in their respective divisions at the Bob Timmons Classic hosted by the University of Kansas on a hot Saturday.
On the women's side, Elizabeth Jach '09 (pictured) led the way with a 20th-place finish on the 5 kilometer course. Her time was 21:07.6. She was followed by Catherine Bisignano '12 (22nd in 21:12.2), Rachel Whitfield '10 (26th in 21:21.5), Hannah Colter '12 (30th in 21:34.3) and Becky Bessinger '09 (35th in 21:40.8).
Grinnell tallied 96 points in the team standings. Kansas won the team crown and Butler County Community College was second.
The Pioneer men had 94 points to finish behind the host school and Butler County Community College (the Kansas alumni team also competed but does not officially count).
Henry Reich '09 led the Pioneers with an eighth-place finish in 26:23.1 over the 8 kilometer course. Next in line for the Pioneers were David Montgomery '10 and Nick Sparr '09, who were 17th and 18th in 27:12.8 and 27:15.8, respectively. Dan Krauss '12 was 22nd in 27:24.9 and Sam Calisch '10 placed 24th in 27:27.1.
The Pioneers host the annual Les Duke Invitational Sept. 13 at Oakland Acres Golf Course.
Bob Timmons Women's Meet Results
Bob Timmons Photos
