Women's Cross Country Members Savor the Nationals Experience
The STLCOP women's cross country team enjoyed their experience at the NAIA Cross Country Championships, including the rainy weather of the Pacific Northwest. After meeting at STLCOP at 4:15a.m. and flying out of Lambert Airport at 6 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 19, the team was was welcomed
to Seattle with pouring rain. After a quick visit to the Pike Place Market (famous for the throwing of fish), the team traveled to Vancouver, Wash., to check out the 5K championship cross country course before heading to a special event for all national qualifiers at the Nike National Headquarters, which included a tour of the headquarters and the Champions of Character awards banquet. Third-year Karen Obermann was recognized as STLCOP's Champion of Character, and, as such, sat on stage with Head Coach David Baker, who was honored for his KIAC Coach of the Year award.
On race day, the rain subsided, but conditions were cold, cloudy, and windy. With five minutes before race time, the sun peaked out from beneath the clouds, but still the course was wet and slow. The mush and mud were consistent throughout the 5K course causing several runners to lose shoes in the muck during the race.
Fourth-year Rachel Maedeker led the Euts, finishing 266th with a time of 21:26. Second-year Megan Rogers was just behind her at 21:34. STLCOP's Courtney Wiedemer and Kelsey Jett were the third and fourth runners for the team, with Melissa Webelhuth, Karen Obermann, and Lindsey Vandersteen following.
"The girls were aggressive at the start and really ran tough," Coach Baker said. "Of our seven girls, five ran faster than they did at conference." This was not an easy feat considering the course was about a minute slower than last year due to the conditions.
While the team finished 32nd of 32 teams, Baker felt good about his runners' performances. "I think they knew going in it was going to be tough, and I think they had the satisfaction that they did their absolute best," he said. "I definitely felt like they put everything out ther e... four season PRs on a very wet course and three very good performances."
The women's team is the first in STLCOP history to qualify for and compete in a national championship.
After the flight back to St. Louis, the team was met at the airport by Baker's wife and four young children holding signs congratulating the team and welcoming them back to St. Louis with homemade cookies.
"What a great experience for the girls." Baker said. "It kind of hit me yesterday just how awesome the experience was. It made me feel very lucky to have had the opportunity. It was truly a special weekend and one that will rank high on my running experiences chart for a long, long time."
Members of STLCOP Men's Cross Country Team Take 2nd in St. Louis Track Club Marathon Relay
While the women's team was at nationals, four members of STLCOP's men's cross country team combined their efforts and took second place in the St. Louis Track Club Marathon Relay in Forest Park on Sunday, Nov. 22. The quartet of David Baker, Sarju Pancel, Mark Seitz, and Silvio Flaim each ran 3.25 miles before tagging their teammate. Each runner had to run two legs of the relay to compose an entire marathon distance of 26.2 miles. The Eutectic team finished the marathon in 2:42.20, averaging 6:18 per mile. In doing so, the team finished second among 55 entered teams, winning their age division.
Women's Team Wins KIAC Conference Title and Qualifies for NAIA National Championships
For the first time in history, STLCOP holds a conference title and will be sending an entire team to a national championship. The women's cross country team beat out five other teams in the KIAC on
November 6 in Nashville to become conference champions and qualify for the NAIA Cross Country Championships in Vancouver, Wash., on November 21.
Head Coach David Baker was named KIAC Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year and became the first coach in STLCOP history to earn Coach of the Year honors.
"Everybody was serious this year," Baker says. "I knew the second we got on the bus that we were prepared to race."
After a big team hug the night before the race, Baker told the team, "I don't care if we win tomorrow or not, but by golly we're going to go for it!"
He stressed to the Lady Euts that Berea College would be the team to beat. "I told them 'There are no choices. If you see a Berea girl, you're going to pass them. Find the Berea girls, sit on their tails, make a big surge at the mile mark and break them! We are going to break their hearts.' And, that is exactly how it worked," Baker says. Three Eutectic runners passed their Berea counterparts with 50 meters to go in the race to beat Berea by 10 points for the championship title.
Third-year Megan Rogers led the Euts finishing the 5K race in third place at 21:43. Fourth-year Rachel Maedeker was right on her heels in fourth place at 22:49, with fifth-year Kelsey Jett coming in at eighth place and 22:49. These three athletes placed high enough at the championship meet to earn All-Conference honors. Rounding out the champion eutectic team were first-year Courtney Wiedemer (14th at 23:21), fourth-year Melissa Webelhuth (16th at 23:30), third-year Karen Obermann (27th at 26:13), and fifth-year Lindsey Vandersteen (30th at 27:25).
The Lady Eut runners will continue training until their departure for nationals on November 19.
David Baker Named KIAC Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year
Head Cross Country Coach David Baker was "shocked" after watching his women's team win the KIAC
conference on November 6 and qualify as a team for the NAIA championships. To top that off, he was named KIAC Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year for 2009.
"I was shocked," Baker says. "But I had this feeling we could do it."
Baker started the STLCOP cross country programs in 2001, when STLCOP competed as an independent institution. Back then, he was just happy to have enough ladies to field a team. Since then, he has seen the Eutectics join the KIAC, coached athletes to all-conference teams and national qualifications, and helped STLCOP cross country grow into a truly competitive program in St. Louis and the KIAC.
Men's Team Struggles Amid Large Pool of Teams in Post-Season National Qualifier
Third-year David Baker Earns All-Conference Honors
Because the men's KIAC cross country championships of 2008 had only five complete teams compete, the KIAC lost the automatic conference championship bid to the NAIA championships for 2009. Instead of a "conference" meet, KIAC teams were combined with the Transouth and Southern States conferences
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| The men and women's team with Coach Baker |
as well as independents for a large 2009 "post-season national qualifier."
While STLCOP has been a legitimate contender for the conference title in past, the 12-team qualifier proved too much for the Euts this year as the team took tenth place overall. Berea College was the top KIAC team, but since only five full teams competed this year again, the same sort of qualifier will be set up for the KIAC next year.
On the bright side, third-year David Baker earned KIAC all-conference honors in the 8K race. He led the Euts, placing 26th of 100 runners finishing in 27:52.
"David was a casualty (of the conference) this year," Head Coach David Baker says. "He should be going to nationals."
Following Baker was third-year Silvio Flaim in 60th place at 30:30, second-year Zac Walter (75th at 32:44), third-year Sarju Panchal (78th at 33:10), and first-year Mark Streitz (81st at 33:38).
Eutectics Run Well in Louisville
The Eutectic men's and women's cross country teams traveled to Louisville, Ky., on Saturday, Oct. 3 to compete in the Greater Louisville Cross Country Classic, one of the Midwest's largest cross country meets. Both teams lined up against more than 40 schools and came away with some successful performances.
The men's team was led by third-year David Baker, who finished 143rd out of 331 runners. Baker's time of 28:24 was a strong performance on a slightly winding and wet course. Baker was followed by Zac Walter (32:11), Sarju Panchal (32:49PR), Mark Streitz (33:57PR), and Brian Chronister (37:57).
"This was the first 8k of the year for the guys, and I thought they handled themselves very well," said Coach David Baker. "I'm looking to see us run much faster in two weeks at Evansville; I think that race will reflect more on our abilities."
The women's team was led once again with a strong performance by Rachel Maedeker. Maedeker's time of 21:47 put her in 140th place, almost a minute faster than she ran at Louisville last year.
"Rachel's running very strong." says Coach Baker. "She's being very aggressive at the start of the races, and I'm excited about the direction her season is heading." Megan Rogers (22:33), Melissa Webelhuth (23:17), Courtney Wiedemer (24:01), Karen Obermann (24:43), Elle Potter (26:22), and Lindsey Vandersteen (26:29) rounded out the Eutectic women's performances.
"In many ways I feel like this was our first competitive meet of the year," says Coach Baker. "I thought our women ran well, but I'm looking forward to seeing improvements in our next couple of meets. Overall the men's team finished 33rd and the women finished 29th.
Rachel Maedeker Named KIAC Runner of the Week
Rachel Maedeker was named Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week for September 7. Maedeker, a 2008 national qualifier and three-time KIAC All-Conference runner, is a fourth-year from Mascoutah, Ill. She ran the 5k Maryville Invitational in 23:19 (20th of 56 overall). Maedeker beat her time from last year's race by more than a minute on the same course.
Cross Country Runners Compete in St. Louis Marathon and Half-Marathon
Five STLCOP cross country athletes braved the rain and competed in the “Go! St. Louis Marathon and Family Fitness Weekend” on April 19. Fourth-year Amy Hall and third-year Silvio Flaim raced in the marathon with Head Coach David Baker. Second-years Karen Obermann, Megan Rogers, and Sarju Panchal completed the half-marathon race.
The weather, while mild in temperature, was wet. During the first three miles of the marathon, rain came down in sheets on the runners, soaking them for the rest of the race. A steady drizzle continued throughout the rest of the race. Coach Baker said that in spite of the weather, it was a “successful experience for all who ran.”
Flaim, who ran the half-marathon last year, completed his first marathon in 3:14.41, 14th place in his division (20-24 M). Hall, running in her third marathon, fought off some sickness to finish in 3:22:10, 1st in her division (20-24 W). Obermann, Rogers, and Panchal each successfully finished their first-ever half-marathon. Congratulations, Eutectic runners, on a remarkable accomplishment!
