This past Friday, Oberlin College cross country headed down to Powell, Ohio to compete at the Ohio Wesleyan University Invitational. In a meet that featured many high level Division II and Division III competitors, the Oberlin crew was not to be outdone. The Crimson and Gold remained determined to win and delivered extremely strong performances across the board.
The men’s team was on fire and placed fifth overall in the competition and third among the Division III competitors.
Fourth-year Jonah Barber was the clear star of the day. Barber finished the men’s 8-kilometer race with an impressive time of 25 minutes and 48 seconds.
Barber dominated against the 246 other runners throughout the first three miles. He ultimately placed second by 25 seconds after Ashland University’s Nate Slater, but was first among Division III runners.
Following the race, Barber was selected as the North Coast Athletic Conference Runner of the Week, marking the first time he has received the accolade in his career.
Despite the attention and accolades, Barber said in a message to the Review that the main thing he enjoyed about the competition was the people around him rather than the competition itself.
“[The race] was special [for me] because my family came out to watch, as well as the track team,” Barber wrote. “[The track team] took buses to support us, since this [was] our de facto home meet as our home meet [was] canceled because of the construction on North fields. I’m definitely amped [that] I got athlete of the week, but [it was] much more important [to me that]I got to spend [the day] with family and friends.”
Barber was not the only Oberlin runner to perform at a high level. Second-year Piers Shirk set a personal best of 26 minutes and 3 seconds to obtain fourth place in the 8k. Shirk’s time displayed great teamwork and helped Barber secure the overall victory.
“Shirk took the race out which helped me a lot,” Barber said. “We led the race together for a while, which was great fun.”
Third-years Charlie Endres and Liam Newman also ran very well, with Endres recording a time of 26 minutes and 57 seconds and Newman posting a personal best of 27 minutes and 28 seconds.
The women’s team was equally impressive, placing ninth overall in the meet. Fourth-year Sage Serraino led the pack in the 6-kilometer race with a time of 23 minutes and 48 seconds to place 34th in the event.
Following Serraino, fourth-year Caleigh Lyons placed 38th with a time of 23 minutes 55 seconds. The race was a personal best for Lyons, marking the first time in her career that she finished under the 24-minute mark.
Third-year Amber Borofsky and second-year Logan Lane finished just behind Lyons, with Borofsky coming in almost exactly at the 24-minute mark and Lane at an even 25 minutes.
“A goal we had as a team last Friday was to commit to competing the entire race, and we did that,” Lyons said. “There were plenty of personal and season bests in the 6k and 8k races, which speaks to the hard work people have been putting in. This meet gave us the jolt of energy and confidence boost that we need as we turn the calendar and see the postseason approaching. As a team we can be proud of our results so far, and still be hungry for more.”
Oberlin cross country returns to action Oct. 19, when they will travel to Geneseo, NY to compete in the SUNY Geneseo Mike Woods Invitational.
