Cross Country | Photo by Jacob Craig
Wright State University Men and Women’s Cross Country teams opened their season on Sept. 6 at their home meet, the Mike Baumer Invitational.
Men’s Cross Country
The men’s cross country team has a lot of depth going into the 2024 season.
The Raiders finished second out of nine teams at the Mike Baumer Invitational, only losing by one point. It was the first time in a long time that the men's team had beaten the University of Dayton.
Ethan Neblock is a senior member and captain of the cross country and track team. He is currently studying math and plans to return next year to get his MBA in economics and continue competing for the team.
“We have a really young and really fast team,” Neblock said. “It’s the best team finish we’ve had since I’ve been here.”
Neblock explains that overall the team had nearly 20 personal records. Personal records typically come towards the end of the season, so having this large of a number for their opening meet shows the competitive nature that the men’s team is expected to bring this season.
WSU’s top five runners at the Mike Baumer meet include Blake Rodgers (7th), Evan McPherson (11th), Preston Jackson (13th), Patrick Statzer (15th) and Andrew Bugner (16th). Multiple freshman runners made appearances on the varsity team, which generally only includes the top ten runners.
Rodgers, who finished first for the team, set a new WSU freshman record and was named Horizon League Male Freshman of the Week.
The team’s top two runners from 2023, Noah Sharp and Alex McCarty, are out for the season. With everyone returning next year, the Raiders will have a greater chance to compete for a Horizon League title.
Looking into the future, we expect that the WSU men’s team will become well-known in the Horizon League and a recognizable team for the school as a whole.
Women’s Cross Country
The women’s team is also looking competitive going into the 2024 cross country season.
The team finished fourth out of eight teams. There were several personal records on the women’s team as well.
Reece Barnitz is a sophomore runner at WSU studying biology on the pre-med track, with plans of becoming a physician. She has competed on both the cross country and track teams throughout the last year and a half.
“Compared to last year, the women's team this year is much larger and much younger,” Barnitz said.
Barnitz explains that the team has twelve freshmen this year, making a lot of room for improvement throughout the season and in the coming years.
The top five finishers for the women’s team include Emma Johnson (6th), Shelby Hept (21st), Reece Barnitz (22nd), Samantha Seas (23rd) and Anna Johnson (35th).
“Our goal is to continue building and progressing from week-to-week and race-to-race throughout the season,” Barnitz explained.
Hept, who finished second for the women's team, set a personal record and was named the Horizon League Female Freshman of the Week.
The Raider cross country teams will toe the line next at Cedarville University on Sep. 20 and John McNichols Invitational on Sep. 21.
