#2 Grand Valley State Captures First-Ever National Championship

Louisville, Ky.- For the first time in program history, the #2 Grand Valley State women's cross country team won the 2010 Division II National Championship, earning the team trophy on Saturday afternoon (Dec. 4) at the Division II Fall Festival in Louisville, Ky. Five GVSU runners placed in the top-30, with seniors Katherine McCarthy (fourth) and Megan Maceratini (ninth) totaling top-10 finishes en route to the team title.

After finishing in second place at the national meet in 2005, 2008, and 2009 and earning top-three finishes each of the last five years, the Lakers finally pushed themselves over the hump, capturing the team trophy with a dominating performance. As a team, GVSU scored 66 points and finished 29 points ahead of second-place Western State (95 points). Adams State was third with 98 points, while Shippensburg (114) and Chico State (164) rounded out the top-five schools.

Laker head coach Jerry Baltes could not be more proud of his team. "This is an outstanding day for GVSU cross country," said Baltes, in his 12th year at the helm of the Laker program. "Our men started the day with the best finish (third-place) in school history. Then the women executed a perfect race plan to capture our first national championship."

Leading the way for Grand Valley State were McCarthy and Maceratini, a pair of seniors who put forth tremendous efforts in their last collegiate race. McCarthy earned a fourth-place finish by crossing the line with a time of 21:10.6, while Maceratini was close behind in ninth place, totaling a time of 21:34.3.

Three more Lakers finished in a pack from spots 22 through 27. Junior Rebecca Winchester earned a 22nd place finish with a time of 21:50.9, while senior Kylen Cieslak and junior Julia Nowak crossed the line one after another. Cieslak placed 26th with a time of 21:56.9, while Nowak was 27th, finishing at 22:01.0.

GVSU had two other runners not record points for the Lakers, but also turned in fine performances. Sophomore Monica Kinney came in 30th place with a time of 22:03.6, while junior Jessie Vickers finished 32nd, crossing the line at 22:09.0.

"We are very proud of all of our student-athletes," continued Baltes. "This accomplishment is a tribute to all the hard work everyone has put in over the last year and even over the course of the careers of our upperclassmen. I also want to recognize and thank all of our alumni over the years that have helped lay the groundwork to get us to this point. We are all very proud to be Lakers today!"