Wheeling, W. Va. - All season long, the Wheeling University Women's Cross Country team has been preparing for the 2022 Mountain East Conference (MEC) Championships. On Saturday, that day finally came, and the Cardinals responded with one of their best finishes in program history, placing fourth overall. They had three runners earn Second Team All-MEC honors for their efforts as the Women's Cross Country program continues to grow. 

Leading the way for the Cardinals was freshman Sydney Hambel picked up her first top spot finish for the Cardinals this season, placing 13th overall and earning All-MEC Second Team honors. The freshman was competing in her first championship event of her career and ended up posting a time of 25:38.74 while scoring 13 points for her team. It was also Hamble's highest finish of the season as she continues to grow on the course. Finishing right behind her was senior Savanaugh Anderson, who finished 14th overall with a time of 25:48.03. She finished two spots higher than her performance last season and took home her second All-MEC Second Team honors of her career. 

Rounding out the list of All-MEC award winners was graduate student Caroline Fodor, who just qualified finishing 20th overall. She finished the day at 26:24.71 and earned the first All-MEC honors of her Cross Country career in what was her best performance in a Championship event. For the Cardinals, the three All-MEC award winners were the most for the program since the 2019 season when they had two award winners at the event. With two of their three All-MEC honorees set to return, the Cardinals look to continue to build on their success in the future. 

Finishing fourth for the Cardinals was freshman Gabby Baiano, who placed 30th overall in her first Championship race. Baiano finished with a 27:48.79 on the 6K course, giving her something to build off of as she continues her run. The final runner for the Cardinals was sophomore Rachel Schenck, who was also competing in her first MEC Championship event. She set a new PR on the course, running a 30:45.63 and finished 81st overall in the field. 

The Wheeling University Women's Cross Country team continues their postseason efforts as they head to the NCAA Super Regionals on Saturday, November 19th, at Lock Haven, Pennsylvania.