Lady Flames Win Fourth Consecutive GSC XC Championship
Photo courtesy of Lee Athletic Communications
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – The Lee University women’s cross country team captured its fourth-consecutive Gulf South Conference Cross Country Championship and Celine Ritter won her second-straight individual title Saturday morning. The GSC Championship was contested on a 5K course in John Hunt Park.
The fourth team title ties the Lady Flames with West Georgia for the second-most team championships. Alabama Huntsville has recorded five titles. Ritter joins seven other women runners to become two-time GSC Individual Champions.
”It was a great day to be a Lady Flame,” said Lee head coach Caleb Morgan. “Not only did we take home both the team and individual titles, but four of our top five had PRs. I’m proud of this group of girls and to have graduated two of our top three last year and come back and win our fourth consecutive GSC title is something that speaks to the effort these ladies put in since the shutdown back in March.”
The Lady Flames placed four runners in the top 10 and six in the top 17 on their way to accumulating 32 points. Mississippi College finished second with 53 points after putting five runners among the first 14 finishers, but just one in the top five.
Ritter posted the fastest time ever recorded in the GSC Championship. Her time of 17:01.68 was almost 34 seconds ahead of Montevallo’s Justine Glass and nearly 51 seconds faster than Kaylee Stewart of Alabama Huntsville. Ritter’s performance also improved her Lee record time. She had set the previous mark of 17:06.32 on the same course back on Sept. 19 in the UAH Chargers XC Open.
Toni Moore was the fourth runner across the finish line at 17:57.47. Danielle Horter placed sixth (18:08.36), and Olivia McLain was ninth (18:11.45). Hannah Spooneybarger completed Lee’s top five with a 12th-place finish (18:35.39).
Audrey Royer was 17th (18:54.81) and Lily Hare finished 23rd (19:14.79). Elizabeth Heckman (19:49.47) and Liza Kellerman (19:59.85) were 30th and 31st, respectively. Elizabeth Beckham completed the course in 20:00.01 for 36th.
Ritter, Moore, Horter and McLain earned First Team All-GSC honors for finishing in the top 10 while Spooneybarger and Royer received Second Team All-GSC mention after crossing in positions 11-20. Ritter also was named GSC Runner of the Year and Horter was GSC Freshman of the Year.
Morgan was named GSC Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year for the fourth time. The award was his 15th GSC Coach of the Year selection, the most among cross country and track & field coaches in GSC history.
