WOOSTER, Ohio – Junior Dylan Kretchmar inched past NCAA Div. I Cleveland State University's Natalie Keller at the finish for a runner-up showing, then classmate Drew Robertson established the L.C. Boles Memorial Golf Course men's 4K record with a convincing blue-ribbon time of 12:57.6 to cap the season-opening Wooster Invitational on Friday evening.
Robertson seized control of the 30-competitor men's race early, and surged ahead about halfway through, en route to a winning time that ranked nearly 40 seconds better than junior Will Callender's supporting 13:36.8. In fact, Wooster had the top-four varsity collegiate finishers in the race, as junior Eric Johnson's 14:03.1 and sophomore Joe Ahmann's 14:05.6 ranked fourth and fifth overall.
Wooster's entire top-seven was within the field's top-10. Junior Ben Nichols was Wooster's five harrier on the night with the seventh-place time of 14:19. First-year Nick Schade debuted with a ninth-place time of 14:46.7, and sophomore Zane DeMercurio was right behind with the 10th-place effort of 14:50.9.
On the women's side, Kretchmar gradually succeeded in a conquest of surpassing multiple Vikings. The junior came to the closing stretch in third, just behind Keller, and just did edge out the Cleveland State first-year at the finish. Kretchmar's official time of 16:38.7 was a fraction ahead of Keller's 16:38.9.
Wooster's youth showed a lot of promise and potential, with first-year Zanna Anderson's 13th-place time of 18:17.3 and classmate Reeve Helvoigt's 15th-place pace of 19:15.5 ranking within the team's top four. Junior Jessie Breth was Wooster's No. 2 on the night, crossing the finish at 17:47.5.
Wooster's strong junior class comprised the rest of the top-seven, with Isabelle Dwyer's 16th-place time of 19:25.0 leading the trio. Lily Baker was next in 17th-place (19:44.4) and Julianna Fiori claimed a top-20 spot with a time of 19:55.9.
Cleveland State's Mia Beemsterboer's 16:13.1 was the winning time on the women's side. The Wooster Invitational was a non-scoring meet.
Next, Wooster is at the North Coast Athletic Conference Championships Preview, with that meet hosted by Denison University on Saturday, September 9. Start time is 10 a.m.
