Women’s cross country places fourth at A-R-C Championships

DECORAH, Iowa -- The Simpson College women's cross country team collected a fourth-place finish at the American Rivers Conference Championships on Saturday, the program's best finish since the 2009 season.

Wartburg earned its third-straight team title with 20 points. The Knights had six of the top-seven marks and landed 10 total on the 15-person All-A-R-C Team. Loras' Kassie Rosenbum fueled her team to a second-place finish by crossing the finish line 86.5 seconds before any other runner for the women's individual title. Central tallied two all-conference medals for third place, and Nebraska Wesleyan had one all-league performer.

"Our women ran excellent today and I couldn't be more proud of them," said Heath Moenck, Head Cross Country Coach. "We have a special group of senior women and their leadership and commitment to Simpson cross country has been so rewarding to witness. Cat, Lara and Teghan were impressive to lead our squad."

Cat Lucht led the way for the Storm with her second top-20 performance in as many years. The senior from Des Moines, Iowa ran the course in 24:03.7, just 20 seconds shy of a spot on the all-conference squad. Lara Kallem came in second with a time of 24:15.5 and Teghan Booth finished just outside the top-30 with a 24.26.7 race.

Mackenzie Laughlin leaped 22 spots in the standings from a year ago, navigating the course in 24:38.5 to place 33rd. Emma Angus ran a 24:42.6 in her first Championships to round out the Storm's top-five.

Up Next
Simpson will travel to Rock Island, Ill. to compete at the NCAA Midwest Regional on Nov. 13.

Women's Results
20. Cat Lucht, 24:03.7
26. Lara Kallem, 24:15.5
31. Teghan Booth, 24:26.7
33. Mackenzie Laughlin, 24:38.5
37. Emma Angus, 24:42.6
41. Alayna Wallace, 24:51.2
44. Macie Bopp, 24:56.7
57. Katie Murano, 25:35.1
60. Tatum Turner, 25:44.5
62. Kaya Young, 25:47.0
67. Ashley Rockhold, 26:00.6
74. Emily Erhardt, 26:16.3
79. Abby Loecke, 26:27.1
80. Sophie Hall, 26:28.0
91. Kyli Orr, 26:56.5
106. Grace Porath, 27:41.6
119. Kylee Bass, 28:25.4
120. Isabella Mertens, 28:28.5
128. Barbara Martinez, 30:50.2
132. Paige Nygaard, 32:33.1
133. Mary Nelson, 33:02.8