Case Western Reserve University senior Jacob Slater became the first Spartan ever to win the overall individual championship at the All-Ohio Challenge, and both the Spartan men and women claimed the Division III Team Championships at the meet on Friday night in Cedarville, Ohio.

Slater crossed the finish line of the men's 8K race with a time of 25:01.2, placing 7.9 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher. His effort helped the men finish with a score of 88 points in the overall team standings, placing behind only Division II Walsh, while the team's score of 39 points in the DIII standings was well ahead of second-place Denison (62 points) and third-place Ohio Northern (80 points).

Meanwhile, the CWRU women placed fourth overall in the team standings in the 6K race with a score of 165, behind Division I Cincinnati (24 points), and Division II Cedarville (56 points) and Walsh (158 points). The Spartans finished with a score of 54 points in the DIII standings, placing 10 points ahead of second-place Mount Union.

Women's Race

• Sophomore Reid Smith was the Spartans' top finisher, placing 20th out of 324 runners overall and fourth among 178 Division III competitors with a time of 23:19.3.

• Sophomore Francesca Taracila was fifth among DIII runners and 24th overall with a time of 23:23.0.

• Two CWRU first-year runners followed with impressive debuts at the 6K distance, with Katie Straub placing 38th overall (ninth among DIII runners) with a time of 23:42.4 and Josslyn Wade coming in 50th overall (15th among DIII runners with a time of 23:52.7.

• Junior Cecilia Postma rounded out the Spartans' scorers with a 62nd-place finish (21st in DIII) with a time of 24:05.8, while juniors Becca Liaw (24:25.4, 82nd, 32nd DIII) and Julia Walko (24:40.7, 98th, 39th DIII) served as the team's displacers.

• Other finishers for the CWRU women on Friday included sophomore Elena Von Handorf (24:49.3, 109th, 49th DIII), sophomore Maya DiPasquale (25:33.9, 146th, 67th DIII), sophomore Kasey Thomas (26:57.2, 204th, 104th DIII), and sophomore Hannah Nevius (27:25.9, 218th, 114th DIII).

Men's Race

• Slater was the top finisher out of 420 total runners in the men's 8K race, including 220 Division III runners.

• Junior Donovan Crowley was close behind Slater, placing second among DIII competitors and sixth overall with a time of 25:29.4.

• Junior Adam Esa was eighth among Division III runners and 26th overall with a time of 26:09.9, while sophomore Kian Schneeweis (26:22.8, 38th, 14th DIII) and junior Brendan Bradish (26:30.9, 44th, 17th DIII) rounded out the team's scorers.

• Sophomore Jay Woodhouse (26:39.4, 59th, 26th DIII) and junior Lucas Siepser (26:49.1, 64th, 30th DIII) completed the team's top-seven finishers.

• Other Spartans in action on Friday night included junior Adam Joseph (27:06.5, 85th, 37th DIII), sophomore Devin Montileone (27:15.7, 99th, 44th DIII), sophomore Thijs Doot (27:29.9, 123rd, 55th DIII), sophomore Caleb Guarino (27:55.8, 168th, 79th DIII), first-year Liem Sidhu (28:00.4, 175th, 84th DIII), sophomore Austin Schneidler (28:29.2, 212th, 106th DIII), first-year Gen Ogami (28:36.6, 223rd, 111th DIII), first-year George Soyka (28:37.5, 224th, 112th DIII), and sophomore Lowell Copps (29:42.8, 281st, 144th DIII).

Spartan Notes

• Friday night marked the first 6K race of the season for the CWRU women and the first 8K race for the men.

• The CWRU men entered the meet ranked fourth in the Great Lakes Region, while the women were ranked 10th.

• Smith was the top finisher for the CWRU women for the first time in her career.

• Thomas recorded a career-best 6K time on Friday, while Schneeweis, Siepser, Joseph, and Doot each recorded their career-best 8K time at the meet.

Up Next

The Spartans will be back in action on Friday, October 2, at the Paul Short Run, hosted by Lehigh University at the Goodman Campus Cross Country Course in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.