Shippensburg University’s decorated team of runners gathered on Saturday, Nov. 21, amongst the rest of the nation’s Division II Cross Country teams, in Joplin, Missouri for the 2015 NCAA National Championships. The championships, which were held at Missouri Southern State University, featured competition between both men's and women’s teams alike. The loud, sporadic bang of the official’s gun that marks the beginning of each race was accompanied by unanimous cheering and shouting with the excitement of the day’s activities.

Women’s Results

The Raiders’ women’s cross country team ended the day at a respectable 22nd place, with Casey Norton leading the charge, finishing 68th place with a time of 21:54. The team generated a combined 521 points, falling just short of Atlantic Region opponent Edinboro University, which had 507 points and a 21st place finish. Shippensburg University’s talented squad improved upon their 2014 24th place finish by jumping up two spots thanks to the consistent clutch performances from junior Casey Norton. Crossing the finish line almost 30 seconds after Norton, sophomore Bryanna Dissinger came up big as she was the team’s second finisher, with fellow sophomore Caity Reese not far behind. There were many more impressive times that were recorded by runners Lizzie Manickas (22:38), Hannah Fulton (22:45), Jackie Kinkead (24:04) and Emily Kachik (24:09). With finishing times ranging from 21:54 to 24:09, the Red Raiders held strong command of the day, collecting enough points to match their 2013 finish.

Men’s Results

The repetitive success that the Raiders indulge in continued on Saturday as its men’s cross-country team once again swept spectators off their feet with an impressive outing. Out of the 32 teams in attendance at the National Championships, Shippensburg University was able to grab a 5th place finish. With a team total of 210 points, SU continued its consistent top-tier performance as it had all season long. Each of the Raiders’ runners finished within a minute of each other, holding onto its widespread perfection and staggering uniformity. SU’s superb athletes ran the table as Austin McGinley was able to finish in 32nd place with a highly respected time of 30:24.9, and obtaining All-American honors in the final campaign of his collegiate cross country career. While McGinley was the only one of the Red Raiders to earn All-American honors, teammate and junior Kieran Sutton finished at 46th place, with a time of 30:38.5, six places short of becoming an All-American. Sophomore Alex Balla was also an immense resource to the team’s success as he finished in 52nd place with a time of 30:44.8. Further spectacular displays of athletic might came as Braden Bruning (30:58) finished at 66th place. Incredible times continued to pour in from Shippensburg runners with Calvin Conrad-Kline (31:03.1) finishing at 73rd place, Dominic Stroh (31:38.7) finishing at 123rd, and Cole Nissley (33:36.9) at 235th. This impeccable season that set sail just over three months ago was the best finish the team has had in the National Championships since the 1991 squad was able to obtain a tied 4th place finish. 

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