By RANDY PAYTON

Rio Grande Sports Information

RIO GRANDE, Ohio – The University of Rio Grande produced four of the top five finishers and took first place as a team in Friday morning’s women’s college division race as part of the 52nd Annual Patty Forgey Invitational at a cool, damp Bob Willey Cross Country Course.

Mackenzie McCarthy, a senior from New Franklin, Ohio, posted a runner-up finish by completing the 5k course in a time of 21:52, while her teammates – sophomore Grace Forrest (Mechanicsburg, OH), sophomore Amarissa Kerns (Lancaster, OH) and junior Jayden Roach (Baltimore, OH) – filled positions 3-5 in the field of 19 runners.

Forrest crossed the line in 21:55, Kerns posted a time of 22:18 and Roach had a mark of 22:19.

The race, which featured runners from three other schools – West Virginia University-Tech, the University of Pikeville and Alice Lloyd College – had two teams competing for the team championship with UPike joining Rio Grande in the hunt.

The RedStorm, based on a ninth-place finish by senior Alyssa Dingus (Wheelersburg, OH), swept the top five scoring positions for a perfect score of 15. Dingus posted a time of 23:50.

Pikeville totaled 50 points as a team.

WVU-Tech’s Carmen Camino had the top individual time with a mark of 20:58.

Others representing Rio Grande included junior Kendra Grooms (West Union, OH), who finished 10th in a time of 23:53; sophomore Chloe Lovett (Washington Court House, OH), who was 11th after crossing in 24:33; and freshman Isabella McVey (Stewart, OH), who placed 12th with a time of 24:50.

 The RedStorm return to action on Nov. 4 at the River States Conference Championship in Midway, Ky.