The Southwestern Michigan College cross country team had a solid debut at the Golden Grizzlies Open hosted by Oakland University Friday.

Published 1:57 pm Saturday, September 4, 2021

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ROCHESTER — The Southwestern Michigan College cross country team had a solid debut at the Golden Grizzlies Open hosted by Oakland University Friday.

The Roadrunners, returning to collegiate athletics for the first time in 25 years, finished third overall in the women’s 4,000-meter race and fourth in the men’s 5,000-meter race.

Oakland University won both races by sweeping the top five spots. In the women’s race, St. Clair County Community College finished second with 55 points, while Southwestern Michigan College finished third with 93 points.

The individual champion was Rachel Kempt from Oakland with a time of 14:36.

The Roadrunners were led by Ava Hart, who finished 21st with a time of 16:44. Bailee Shambaugh also grabbed a top 30 finish by running a time of 17:45, which was good for 29th.

The Golden Grizzlies also scored 15 points to win the men’s race, while St. Clair County was second with 71 points, Cleary University third with 99 points and SMC fourth with 107.

Oakland’s So Yami Albrecht was the individual winner with a time of 18:47.

Ethan Saylor led the Roadrunners with an 18th place finish and a time of 20:54. Kelsey Brown finished 24th (21:23) and Alec Saylor 28th (21:54).

Complete results can be found online at leaderpub.com by clicking on the Daily Data link for Sept. 4.