BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Penn State Harrisburg couldn't have asked for a better day to run than the mild mid-November afternoon that saw eight Lions take part in the NCAA's Division III Mideast Regional event. On Saturday, Nov. 16, six Blue & White men and two women ran at Lehigh's Paul Short course, a former national championship hosting venue. The men's team posted 1,494 points and finished 49th of 54 teams while the ladies ran as individuals.
As has become the norm this season, Penn State Harrisburg freshman Rachel Sechrist (Allentown, Pa. / Salisbury) was the top finisher on the women's side, finishing the 6k race in 28:31, good enough for 320th place. Junior Alisha House (Crownpoint, N.M. / Thoreau) crossed the finish line in the 334th spot thanks to her time of 30:09.
Freshman Nicholas Sturm (Hamburg, Pa. / Hamburg) was the Lions' top finisher among the men as he completed the 8k race in 29:50, good enough to earn him a 283rd place finish. Following Sturm, it was freshman Joseph Phifer (Union, N.J. / Union), who's time of 30:07 earned him 288th place, and sophomore Edgar Makimoto (Middleburg, Pa. / Selinsgrove Area) finishing in 305th thanks to a time of 30:43. Sophomores Jordan Fuhrman (Columbia, Pa. / Hempfield) and Tyler Fry (Harrisburg, Pa. / Central Dauphin East) finished within four spots of each other, with Fuhrman earning 325th place with a time of 31:22 and Fry's 31:35 good enough for 328th. Sophomore Adam Campbell (Columbia, Pa. / Hempfield) rounded out the Lions' runners in the 354th spot with a time of 33:21.
"It was our first time racing on the course and I was happy to see our ladies compete through the heat, the challenges presented by a new course and a very large field of runners," said Penn State Harrisburg head coach Danielle Lynch. "On the men's side, I was especially pleased with our number two, three and four runners."
The event concluded Penn State Harrisburg's 2013 season; statistically the best in school-history on both the men's and women's front. With every runner who took part in the race on Saturday afternoon eligible to return next fall, the Lions' programs appear poised to continue to grow and improve heading into to 2014.
