Grace College’s men’s and women’s cross country teams pose after a successful day at the Northwest Classic Friday evening. (Photo provided)

WESTVILLE – The cross country season started on a high note for Grace College as the men’s and women’s teams won the Northwest Classic on Friday evening.

“It’s obviously nice to win, but more importantly we made plans for this early race and stuck to those plans,” said Grace head coach Jeff Raymond. “It’s a long season, but this was a nice low-key meet to start with, especially for our nine freshmen.”

The women beat five other teams in the 5k race, placing four runners in the top eight overall. Katelyn McCullough was second individually in a time of 19:32, and freshman Ariel Arellano was just behind her in third place at 19:38. Ariel’s sister Raven Arellano placed sixth with a time of 19:55, and fellow freshman Karla Singer crossed the finish line in eight place (20:24). Emma Mitchell rounded out Grace’s top five with a 13th-place showing of 21:22.

The men also ran a 5k race, claiming a team score of 30 to beat the second-place finisher Purdue Calumet by 14. The Lancers demonstrated a strong pack running style, finishing 4-5-6-7-8-9-13.

Freshmen Joel Bertelsen (16:33) and Brendan Hamilton (16:43) were Grace’s fastest runners, and Tyler Houvener was just behind at 16:44. Sam Hall placed seventh in 16:46, and Hunter Reed was Grace’s fifth runner at 16:58. Brandon Smith also earned a top-10 individual finish at 17:00.

“Three guys bettered their high school PR’s for the 5k, including two freshmen in their first collegiate race,” Raymond continued. “Two women also set person bests. These results will give them confidence as we move into a much tougher part of the season. Plus, the guys will move up to the collegiate 8k racing distance.”

The Lancers’ next race is on Sept. 11 with the Indiana Wesleyan Invitational in Marion, Ind.