JAMESTOWN, N.D. (VCSUVikings.com)- VCSU junior Grace Miller ran the fourth fastest time in school history Friday as she led the Viking women’s cross country team with a 12th-place finish at the Jimmie Invite.
Miller took advantage of great weather and a fast course to cross the line in a time of 19 minutes, 2 seconds. It is the fastest 5K time by a Viking female since 1996 and the fourth fastest time in school history. Miller was also the top NAIA finisher at the meet, trailing only NCAA Division II runners.
VCSU’s women placed 8th as a team with 185 team points. They were just nine points back of the University of Jamestown.
Viking sophomore Allyssa Weitkum took 34th in a time of 20:18. Julianne Wilson placed 46th in 20:55; Kristina Fricke ran a 21:10 to place 49th; and Peyton Halversonrounded out the team with a 23:10 and 67th place finish.
Friday’s race gave the Viking women an early preview of the NSAA championship course, which is also being run at Jamestown’s Parkhurst Cross Country Course on Nov. 3.
“Today we were blessed with great weather, a fast course, and the kids responded in kind,” said VCSU coach Chris Johnson. “I couldn’t be prouder of the way they ran after a week of hard training. The strong competition on both sides brought out the best in us, and I’m excited to see our continued progression in the coming weeks. This will especially be the case when we return to Jamestown next month for the NSAA conference meet.”
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men place 3rd at Jimmie Invite
The Viking men’s cross country team sent the message loud and clear Friday; they are conference championship contenders.
For the second straight race, the Vikings defeated NSAA pre-season favorite and defending conference champion Dickinson State University as the teams competed at the Jimmie Invitational on Friday at Parkhurst Cross County Course.
VCSU finished third out of 10 teams at the meet, edging the Blue Hawks by just four team points.
Viking senior Dennis Gonzalez led the way with a sixth-place finish in a blistering time of 25:27. His time was just two seconds off a Top 10 mark in school history, all of which were set by VCSU’s dominant teams during the 1980’s. It was the fastest 8K time at VCSU since 1987 and the fastest time ever in the history of the North Star Athletic Association.
With Gonzalez’s strong finish leading the way, VCSU’s depth took care of the rest to make them the top NAIA team at the meet, finishing behind only NCAA Division II schools University of Mary and MSU-Moorhead. The Vikings defeated Division II schools Northern State and Minot State.
Dylan Olson came in strong with a time of 26:25 as VCSU’s second finisher, placing 17th overall and recording a score of 16 for the team. Orin Rambow placed 28th (27), Louis Leon was 30th (28) and Joe Celis rounded out the Viking score by placing 34th overall and 31st in the points race. The Vikings showed off their depth as well with Martin Mena (37th) and Zach Nelson (39th) in the Top 40, and Aaron Springer (48th) and Smith Tuya (49th) in the Top 50.
VCSU’s team score of 108 was good enough to narrowly edge Dickinson State, which scored 112. The Blue Hawks had their top five finishers in the Top 32 of the race.
Friday’s race could be an early preview of how competitive the NSAA championships will be, which are also being held at the Parkhurst Course on Nov. 3.
“Today we were blessed with great weather, a fast course, and the kids responded in kind,” said VCSU coach Chris Johnson. “I couldn’t be prouder of the way they ran after a week of hard training. The strong competition on both sides brought out the best in us, and I’m excited to see our continued progression in the coming weeks. This will especially be the case when we return to Jamestown next month for the NSAA conference meet.”
Up next: Valley City State is off until the Mount Marty Invite on Oct. 21 in Yankton, S.D.