After finishing no better than third all season the St. Clair College Women’s Cross-Country team outdid expectations with a team Provincial Gold Medal performance on Saturday at the OCAA Championships which was hosted by Conestoga College (Kitchener). The event was staged at Shade’s Mills Conservation Area in Cambridge and proved to be a beautiful backdrop for the Saints’ Women’s squad first team gold medal since 2013 and the seventh in school history.
St. Clair Women were led by Victoria Horrobin (Wallaceburg) who came in 4th Place against a field of 53 finishers over the 6km course in her best time of the season at 24:02. Camryn Crawford (Kemptville, ON) came across exactly a minute later in a time of 25:02 which was good for 9th Place. For their efforts Horrobin (First-Team) and Crawford (Second-Team) were named All-Ontario team selections. Justine Abbott (Wyoming, ON) finished next for the Saints in 16th position with a time of 26:21 while teammate Melody Knight (Tecumseh, ON/Tecumseh Vista) was chosen as the Fair Play Award recipient and was the final counting runner in 19th position stopping her clock at 26:29. The other finishers for the St. Clair Women were Kendra Bell (Windsor, ON/Holy Names) in 24th Place (27:10) and Victoria Skoyles (Mount Elgin, ON) in 32nd Place (28:25).
In the Men’s 8km race Wesley Hearn (Windsor, ON/Sandwich) was the first St. Clair runner to cross the line in 26th Place with a time of 28:49 that helped the Saints to a 6th Place result in the team competition. Michael Horrobin (Wallaceburg, ON) was next in 28th Place (28:55) followed by Russell Niedre (Ottawa, ON) in 31st position (29:33). Nicholas Horrobin (Wallaceburg, ON) stopped his watch at 29:40 (33rd Place) and was the final counting runner for St. Clair. Other finishers for Saints were Cameron Finch (Forest, ON) in 29:41 (34th Place) and Noah Nicoletti (Windsor, ON/Holy Names) in 29:45 (36h Place) in a race that featured 80 competitors.
The St. Clair Women have qualified for the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association National Championships being hosted by Dalhousie Agricultural Campus (Truro, NS) on Nov. 11th at Victoria Park which is recognized to be one of the most picturesque outdoor facilities in the province.
Go to www.saintsathletics.ca for up-to-date information and results.