WILMINGTON, Ohio - The Wilmington College men's cross country team swept Muskingum University in a dual meet as the Fightin' Quakers had the top five finishers on Friday evening.
Wilmington's two two runners stayed consistent as Simon Heys won the meet individually with a time of 15:39.61 in the five-kilometer race. Reigning Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Freshman of the Year Evan Whitaker claimed runner-up honors, crossing the finish line in 15:45.37. The hosts next two runners - Taton Bertsch and Ryan Honkomp - turned in times of 16:09.55 and 16:35.44 respectively. Sophomore George Rickett, who ran the course in 16:41.38, finished as one of the Quakers' top five individuals for the first time in his career.
"The men had a great race overall," Head Men's Cross Country Coach Ron Combs said. "I feel very confident that we are progressing towards a great performance at the OAC Championships in two weeks. Almost every guy on our team ran a faster 5K tonight than they did the first meet of the year."
Luke Howard was Muskingum's top finisher, taking seventh place with a mark of 16:41.68. A quartet of Quakers - Josh Cyrus (16:50.44), Gage Clemens (17:11.02), Austin Wampler (17:11.76) and Cameron Phelps (17:16.47) - crossed the finish line next.
Wilmington will have a week off before heading to Northeast Ohio for the OAC Championships on Nov. 2.
