Webster Back at Top of Women's Cross Country
After a one-year absence, the Webster University women's cross country team found themselves holding the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship banner once again. Webster had won three straight titles from 2017-19 before placing 2nd last season. The Gorloks secured the championship title once again, the 5th in program history, thanks to a 1-2 finish by a pair of junior runners.
Kyanne Williams took the individual title, leading the Gorloks, with a time of 23:24; although she had to outlast several pushes from conference rivals. Williams and her teammate Danielle Schultz broke out from the starting line with a fast push but saw runners from Spalding University and Principia College keep pace and make runs throughout the 6K race. Near the midway point, it was a battle between Principia's Emme Schaefer and Spalding's Victoria Shedron. However, the Gorlok pair made their move on the final lap with Williams pulling away from the pack and crossing the finish line first. Schultz ran in 3rd as she and Shedron entered the final chute but a final kick pushed into 2nd place with a time of 23:39.04, edging Shedron who finished in 23:39.54. Schaefer capped her collegiate career with a 4th place finish, crossing in 23:45.
After Cora Reed crossed 5th for Webster, Greenville sent the next six runners across the finish line with Gretchen Carie leading the way and giving the Panthers a chance at defending their championship. With three Webster runners in the top five spots and all six Greenville runners across the line, the conference title would be decided on the next three Gorloks order of finish. Megan Bartz and Michelle Grant followed each other across the line for 12th and 13th. It came down to Hailey Debert, who would place 18th and lock up the title for the Gorloks.
Webster finished with 30 points to pick up the title with Greenville finishing 2nd with 35 points. Principia placed 3rd as a team with 69 points and was led by Schaefer's 4th place finish. Fontbonne University came in 4th with Desiree Brooks finishing 17th overall with a time of 27:41. Eureka College took 5th as a team and was led by Riley Reuter's 26th place showing with a time of 31:07. Blackburn College finished 6th with Olivia Leemon crossing in 30:21 and finishing 24th. Shedron was Spalding's lone runner, coming in 3rd while Westminster College's lone runner was Tristan Folkner, who finished 23rd with a time of 30:19.
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