Youngstown State University
Horizon League Cross Country Championships
Men Earn Back-to-Back Horizon League Titles as Christopher's Crowned Champion
10/28/2023 4:40:00 PM | Cross Country
Fairborn, Ohio - Highlighted by the men's conference title and Hunter Christopher's first-place finish, the Youngstown State men's and women's cross country programs put forth an incredible performance at the Horizon League Championships on Saturday.
The men's back-to-back conference titles mark the first time in history the Penguins men have earned consecutive Horizon League Championship victories and represents just the fourth HL title in program history.
Christopher, a senior from Salem, Ohio, earned the first individual cross country title of his career after finishing runner-up in 2021 and fourth in 2022. Christopher sealed his victory with an impressive time of 24:04.17 in the men's 8k, finishing 10 seconds ahead of the other runners.
Ryan Meadows finished runner-up behind Christopher with a time of 24:13.65 as the Penguins amazingly took the two top spots to fuel their victory.
Thomas Caputo was the Penguins' third finisher, picking up an eighth-place finish. Caputo ran a personal-best time of 24:35.30 to help the Penguins to the team title.
Right behind Caputo was redshirt-freshman Sage Vavro in ninth, clocking a personal-best time of 24:36.22.
Rounding out the scoring effort for YSU was redshirt-freshman Blaze Fichter who finished 11th with a time of 24:42.26.
To earn the title, the men finished five in the top 11 and had six Penguins run sub-25 minutes. The Penguins only recorded 31 points in their victory finishing 16 ahead of the runner-up, IUPUI, with 47.
The 2022 women's HLXC champion, Morgan Cole, delivered a runner-up finish in 2023. Cole ran one of the best times of her career in the women's 6k, clocking a 20:50.90. Cole placed in the top six for the fifth consecutive time of her career at the Horizon League Championships. The winner from Purdue Fort Wayne, Madison King, clocked a 20:34.89.
Alyssa Deeds was the next Penguin to cross the line, finishing 16th. Deeds ran a personal-best time of 21:57.27, besting her personal record by nearly 20 seconds.
Hannah Wagner was the third Penguin to cross the line, delivering a time of 23:01.39 to finish 37th.
Freshman Grace Rhoades was close behind in 39th, running a time of 23:05.26. Rounding out the Penguins' scoring effort was Alayna Cuevas who clocked a 23:07.14 for 42nd.
Six Penguins placed in the top 50 for the women who finished fifth overall. The YSU women finished with 133 points while Purdue Fort Wayne won the conference title with 67 points.
Final Scores
Men
- Youngstown State – 31
- IUPUI – 47
- Oakland – 70
- Purdue Fort Wayne – 155
- Green Bay – 175
- Robert Morris – 187
- Milwaukee – 188
- Northern Kentucky – 197
- Wright State – 206
- Detroit Mercy – 251
Women
- Oakland – 67
- Purdue Fort Wayne – 92
- Milwaukee – 116
- IUPUI – 127
- Youngstown State – 133
- Northern Kentucky – 152
- Wright State – 174
- Detroit Mercy – 203
- Green Bay – 210
- Robert Morris – 217
- Cleveland State – 256
Men's All-League First Team
Hunter Christopher, Youngstown State
Ryan Meadows, Youngstown State
Yami Albrecht, Oakland
Andrew Whitinger, IUPUI
Nate Kaiser, IUPUI
Colin Kane, Oakland
Alex McCarty, Wright State
Women's All-League First Team
Madison King, Purdue Fort Wayne
Morgan Cole, Youngstown State
Grace Nolan, Oakland
Brooke Neal, Purdue Fort Wayne
Anelise Egge, Milwaukee
Kaitlyn Miller, Wright State
Allison Sherman, Detroit Mercy
Men's All-League Second Team
Thomas Caputo, Youngstown State
Sage Vavro, Youngstown State
Nicholas Perkins, IUPUI
Blaze Fichter, Youngstown State
Wesley Hollowell, Oakland
Mitchell Rans, IUPUI
Colton O'Hara, Northern Kentucky
Women's All-League Second Team
Kelsey Radobicky, Green Bay
Maryam Sheena, Oakland
Riley Tate, Purdue Fort Wayne
Sophia DeLisio, Northern Kentucky
Julie Smith, IUPUI
Alicia Neumeier, Wright State
Ellie Cates, IUPUI
The Penguins will next compete at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Championships on Friday, November 10 at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course in Madison, Wis. The women's 6k is set for 12:30 p.m. EST (11:30 a.m. CT) followed by the men's 10k at 1:30 p.m. EST (12:30 p.m. CT).
