CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Besides claiming the women's title and faring well in the men's race, Grinnell College's cross country teams collected many individual awards at the Midwest Conference Championships Saturday.
Lizzie Drew '29 and
Jack Lakin '29 were named Women's and Men's Newcomers of the Year, respectively,
James Snyder '26 won the Men's Elite 20 Award and
Sarah Burnell and staff were named Women's Coaching Staff of the Year.
Drew earned All-MWC honors by placing 11
th in the women's 6-kilometer race in a time of 22 minutes, 15.0 seconds. That time ranks seventh in Grinnell history. In the men's race, Lakin earned All-MWC accolades by placing ninth. He ran 8-kilometer event in 25:39.4, which ranks 27
th all-time for the Pioneers.
Lakin is the third-even Grinnell runner on the men's side to earn the honor, while Drew is the second GC woman to claim the award.
Snyder's Elite 20 Award is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade point average participating in the championship event. The award recognizes the commitment of the student-athlete toward the pursuit of excellence in both the athletic and academic realms. He is the second Pioneer in program history to win the honor.
Burnell, along with staff
Andrew Nickeson and
Keegan Parrott, guided the Pioneers to the MWC women's team title with 40 points. Burnell now has three MWC Coach of the Year honors to her credit, two on the women's side and one on the men's. The title was the 22
nd ever for GC's women.