The Waynesburg University cross country team ran in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Championships on Saturday, Nov. 4. The men’s team finished sixth overall out of ten teams, while the women’s team finished seventh out of 11 teams. 

Head Coach Chris Hardie talked about who he was surprised by on the men’s and women’s teams, giving praise to runners such as senior Andrew Kasper and sophomore Grace Tanksley

“I was really surprised by Kasper. We knew he was going to run well, he was leading the race at the halfway point, which totally shocked us. I didn’t know if it would last, but he did end up fading a few spots,” Hardie said. “Tanksley was sitting in first team All-PAC, but ended up fading a few spots at the end.”

Kasper finished fifth overall for the men’s team, which was his best placing in the PAC championship race throughout his college career. Kasper was followed by graduate student Quintin Weaver, who placed 15th overall, and Freshman Lucas Means, who finished 49th overall. Senior Matt Shank finished off the top four for the Jackets, placing 55th overall.

Kasper received first team All-PAC honors for his impressive placing, while Weaver was an honorable mention all-conference for placing top-15.

The women’s team had sophomore Grace Tanksley place 12th overall. The Jackets then had Michaela Rose, Jaylene Mundorff and Joula Anderson place 53rd, 54th and 55th respectively. It is worth noting that he women’s team did not have two of its top runners, as both sophomore Reagan Pettis and Senior Gabi Reifsnyder were both out.

Tanksley talked about what she had to overcome without the leadership of `Reifsnyder.

“A lot of time during the middle-endish of the race I usually space out,” Tanksley said. “At that point, Gabi catches up to me, and kind of knocks me out of it. I had to not do that because she wasn’t there to do that for me, so it made me focus for the whole time.”

The Yellow Jackets will travel to Lock Haven, Pa, for the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships on Nov. 11. For this race, the men’s team will likely only bring eight runners, and the women’s team will bring ten, as each team will only be allowed to race seven.