Women's Results
Men's Results
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Nov. 12, 2024, RICHMOND, VA. -- History was made on Monday for the 2024 Grand Rapids Community College cross country teams after competing in its first Half Marathon at the NJCAA National Championships in Richmond, VA. 

Four members of the women's team - who finished fifth at the cross country National Championship on Saturday - competed in the 13.1 mile event, and five members of the 14th place men's team also took part against the strong field of competition.

The women's team had an exceptional performance, securing 10th place overall out of 20 teams and taking third place among all Division II teams. Leading the charge was Elicia Land, who placed 35th out of 116 finishers with a time of 1:34:24. She was closely followed by Olivia Lemke in 52nd place (1:39:31), Gloria Gaston in 58th (1:39:53), and Mariana Zaragoza in 77th (1:44:10). This team effort showcases their dedication and ability to compete at the highest levels, marking a season highlight for the program.

On the men's side, the team achieved 20th place out of 27 teams. Joseph VanderKooi led the men's group with an impressive time of 1:16:35, finishing 73rd out of 171 participants. Following him were Isaac Skinner in 98th (1:18:38), John DiPiazza in 133rd (1:22:53), Sam Pugh in 139th (1:24:46), and Haegan Land in 155th (1:28:35). The men's perseverance and teamwork were evident as they pushed through a competitive field.

Player/Coaches Comments:

Sophomore Elicia Land: "This experience was so much fun! I genuinely had a blast running the half marathon.  It was a great opportunity for all us runners.  I hope that GRCC continues to allow its student-athletes a chance to run in this race."

Freshman Gloria Gaston: "This experience was really awesome to have as a team and it really brought our season to a good close with such a maximum effort event.  I'm looking forward to being able to hopefully run this again in the future."

Sophomore Mariana Zaragoza: "A really fun and exciting race that really pushed me mentally and it feels good knowing we all finished well and pushed ourselves to do something new!"

Men's Head Coach Rob Hyde: "Being the first rime running the half marathon, I am extremely proud of our team. All of our runners except one ran in the cross country finals on Saturday, so it was a quick turnaround to recover and then race again in a few days. Our team ran really smart starting off conservative and then moving through the field and then hanging tough at the end. I couldn't be more happy with our effort and the results in our first ever NJCAA Half Marathon event."

If you know of anyone looking to join next year's cross country team please fill out a questionnaire here.   

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