CLINTON, Ms.--- On Friday afternoon, the Asbury men's and women's cross country squads traveled south to compete in the CCS Conference Championships at the Choctaw Cross Country Trails in Clinton, MS. The women's team took the title of conference champions, finishing first place with a score of 42. The men's claimed third place with a score of 61.
Bailey Gassmann competed for just the second time this season due to being away from campus this fall semester with the Adventure Leadership program. Despite the lack of training and competition the last couple of months, she went right out with the lead pack when the gun went off. By the midpoint of the race she was running comfortably in second place well behind the eventual champion, Skyler Seeber of Piedmont, pulling away from the remaining runners in the race.
Freshman Emma Groff continued the remarkable progress she has made in the last month with a huge PR and a sixth place individual finish. Close behind her was team captain Ava Miller and fellow senior Lily Anne Rinehart. All four of the top Eagle finishers were named to the All-Conference Team.
Nine of the 13 who raced set new personal records for the 6 Kilometer distance.
Ella Morton, Lucy Kate Gibson, and Sarah Yost rounded out the scoring positions for the team.
Bailey Gassmann | 24:07.79
2nd place, All-Conference Team
Emma Groff | 25:18.40
6th place, All-Conference Team
Ava Miller | 25:29.84
9th place, All- Conference Team
Lily Anne Rinehart | 25:42.43
11th place, All-Conference Team
Ella Morton | 25:56.10
14th place
Sarah Yost | 26:03.66
16th place
Lucy Kate Gibson | 26:24.96
19th place
"Wow, I have rarely coached a team that recorded this many personal bests on the same day. The ladies were very excited for the opportunity to compete in our first ever CCS championship meet, but they were loose and relaxed. During devotions last night and before the race today they spoke only of running hard and honoring God. Not once did I hear them talk about winning the meet. They trusted their training, trusted each other, and left the results in the Lord's hands. If we had run this well and not won, I believe they would have been just as pleased with the results because the emphasis was on doing their best."
Randy Crist | Head Cross Country Coach
The men's team ran very well, but came up short finishing in third place behind Covenant and Piedmont. Wes Preston earned First-Team All-Conference honors and Daniel Kersey was named to the All-Conference Second Team.Sophomore Josh Rittgers ran his best cross-country race ever, finishing just outside of the top 10. Seniors Tyler Chong and Luke Holton did very well in the 4th and 5th scoring positions for the Eagles.
Wes Preston | 27:09.31
5th place, First-Team All Conference
Dan Kersey | 27:43.90
7th place, Second Team All-Conference
Josh Rittgers | 28:46.40
12th place
Tyler Chong | 28:55.38
15th place
Luke Holton | 29:35.80
24th place
JoJo Ernst | 29:54.09
28th place
FULL RESULTS
2024 CCS Men's Cross Country All-Conference Honors
Individual Scores
First Team
- Walker Capelle – Piedmont; 26:21.30
- Layton Bradford – Piedmont; 26:32.06
- Josiah Mellott – Covenant; 26:49.06
- Daniel Bowles – Covenant; 26:50.79
- Wesley Preston – Asbury; 27:09.31
Second Team
- Ethan Saiki – Covenant; 27:24.63
- Daniel Kersey – Asbury; 27:43.90
- Tucker Cox – Piedmont; 28:11.60
- Samuel Harrelson – Covenant; 28:36.67
- Tyler Tangel – Maryville; 28:39.50
Team Scores
- Covenant, 33
- Piedmont, 45
- Asbury, 61
- Maryville, 114
- Belhaven, 139
- Huntingdon, 163
Men's Cross Country Superlative Awards
Runner of the Year
Walker Capelle, Piedmont
Rookie of the Year
Tyler Tangel, Maryville
Coach of the Year
Eli Kaczinski, Covenant
Men's Cross Country All-Sportsmanship Team
| Wesley Preston |
Asbury |
| Andrew Duckworth |
Belhaven |
| Josiah Mellott |
Covenant |
| Blake Bailey |
Huntingdon |
| Steve Cope |
Maryville |
| Jadon Gonzales |
Piedmont |
2024 CCS Women's Cross Country All-Conference Honors
Individual Scores
First Team
- Skyler Seeber – Piedmont; 23:36.44
- Bailey Gassmann – Asbury; 24:07.79
- Emerson Tillery – Covenant; 24:15.61
- Megan Shinn – Maryville; 25:07.89
- Evangelia Berry – Covenant; 25:11.47
- Emma Groff – Asbury; 25:18.40
Second Team
- Jane Scanlan-Emigh – Agnes Scott; 25:25.05
- Rachel Arwood – Agnes Scott; 25:28.93
- Ava Miller – Asbury; 25:29.84
- Izzy Juda – Maryville; 25:32.30
- Lily Rinehart – Asbury; 25:42.43
- Lydia Moore – Covenant; 25:43.34
Team Scores
- Asbury, 42
- Covenant, 61
- Piedmont, 93
- Agnes Scott, 96
- Maryville, 125
- Belhaven, 134
- Huntingdon, 153
Women's Cross Country Superlative Awards
Runner of the Year
Skyler Seeber, Piedmont
Rookie of the Year
Megan Shinn, Maryville
Coach of the Year
Randy Crist, Asbury
Women's Cross Country All-Sportsmanship Team
| Mari Walsh |
Agnes Scott |
| Sarah Yost |
Asbury |
| JoAnna Cornette |
Belhaven |
| Kali Hina |
Covenant |
| Kate Smith |
Huntingdon |
| Madison Smith |
Maryville |
| Tanea Davis |
Piedmont |
| Arhana Ahuja |
Wesleyan |
"Going into the meet, we knew that Covenant and Piedmont were very good, and even though we ran well, we were not up to their level today. Despite that, being part of the CCS championship meet was incredible. This is one of the nicest courses we have ever run on. The meet administration was excellent, and we got to compete against schools, athletes, and coaches that we had never seen competition before. It was a great experience and I'm glad we got to be a part of it."
Randy Crist | Head Cross Country Coach
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ABOUT THE COLLEGIATE CONFERENCE OF THE SOUTH (CCS)
The CCS is an NCAA Division III athletic conference that began play during the 2022-23 academic year. The conference features nine member institutions (Agnes Scott College, Asbury University, Belhaven University, Covenant College, Huntingdon College, LaGrange College, Maryville College, Piedmont University, and Wesleyan College) and sponsors championships across 14 sports. In addition to sharing the member institutions' geographic identity, the name 'Collegiate Conference of the South' is indicative of a shared commitment to academic excellence, which is commensurate with the NCAA Division III philosophy.