STORY

Whitewater, Wis. -- The Tom Hoffman Invitational was a celebratory occasion for both Maranatha cross country teams today, as both qualified for NCCAA Nationals.

Jeremy Fopma had a day to remember, as the sophomore runner ran the 8K in 26:58 - good enough for second all-time in program history and just six seconds shy of Will O'Malley's record of 26:52 set in 2012. Fopma was within a minute of his PR of 26:01, which he set at NCAA Central Regionals last year. The Warhawks of Wis.-Whitewater defended their home circuit going away, posting seven runners in the top 11 slots. Whitewater ended up with just 21 points as a team - 50 points clear of the next-closest competitor. Drew Smith and Jefferson Rupert were also within a minute of breaking their PR's, showing promise of a solid season ahead of them. UWW's David Fassbender cut the tape with an impressive time of 26:03 to win the title of the fastest individual.

On the Women's side, Sierra John paced the squad with a 6K of 29:11. John and Katie Jean Lingle were both within a minute of their PR's as well, as Lingle finished just behind John in 24th place. Even if the team hadn't qualified for nationals, John and Lingle would have qualified as individual runners. Team-wise, Whitewater's Jessica Braun finished first overall with a 24:17 6K, lifting the Warhawks over the Edgewood College Eagles, who beat UWW in team time while tying in total points with 35. 

OVERVIEW

• Event: Tom Hoffman Invitational
• Men's Finish: 6th of 7 / 82 points
• Team Time: 2:43:09
• First Runner: Jeremy Fopma - 3rd - 26:58 (8K)
• Women's Finish: 5th of 7 / 132 points
• Team Time: 2:31:13
• First Runner: Sierra John - 23rd - 29:11 (6K)
• Location: Whitewater, Wis. / Wis.-Whitewater
• Next: Saturday, October 5 at Warrior Invitational

RESULTS (Men's 8K)

• 3rd - Jeremy Fopma (26:58)
• 23rd - Jefferson Rupert (31:17)
• 33rd - Jordan Hoffmann (33:24)
• 36th - Heath Holmes (35:35)
• 37th - Drew Smith (35:53)
• (40th) - James Rossiter (37:02)
• (45th) - Zachary Brungard (46:11)

RESULTS (Women's 6K)

• 23rd - Sierra John (29:11)
• 24th - Katie Jean Lingle (29:41)
• 26th - Taylor Ellis (30:10)
• 32nd - Anna Rossiter (30:40)
• 38th - Abigail Doak (31:28)
• (43rd) - Abigail Shetter (36:18)

NATIONALS

The Men's Team made it with room to spare, as their 2:43:09 was well shy of the 3:00:00 team requirement for NCCAA Nationals qualifying.

The Women just edged the qualifying requirement, as their 5K split came in at 2:04:38 - just 22 seconds under the team qualifying time of 2:05:00 for the season finale.

NEXT

The Sabercats will have a couple of weekends off before competing at Wisconsin Lutheran's Warrior Invitational on Saturday, October 5. The races begin at 11:00 a.m. Find details at mbusabercats.com/schedule