Cross country races have a familiar rhythm. After the first mile, there are typically a group of 3 or 4 runners in the front. Often, after the halfway point, the leaders are reduced to two runners.

Most of the time, the runner in second place stays very close to the leader. The second place runner is waiting to have the finish line in sight before unleashing a powerful sprint at the end to win the race.

With 1 mile to go Saturday, October 25 at the NJCAA Region 20 Cross Country Championship, that was the exact situation. The Lynx' Jesse Gresch was in front, and Jacob Davidson of Hagerstown was just behind. Jesse was aware of the situation and knew that Davidson would try to fly by him just before the finish. Rather than wait for the inevitable, Jesse took a chance. With more than a half mile to go (having already run over 4 miles), Jesse shifted gears and picked up the pace. He would try pull away from Davidson enough that he couldn't be caught.  At the finish line, Jesse Gresh had pulled ahead by 12 seconds to become Carroll's first Regional Cross Country Champion. Not far behind Jesse, Braylon Frey  finished fourth, with an excellent race of his own. Overall, the Lynx men's team finished a close second out of the nine teams competing teams. With a team made up entirely of first year men, the future looks very bright for the men's team. 

In the women's race, Caroline Vogelsang ran a strong race of her own to finish second overall. Caroline has broken Carroll school records at every distance at which she has competed. Finishing in the top 100 runners nationally last year, Caroline continues to improve and is looking forward to competing once again in the National Championships on November 8 with other teammates in Fort Dodge, Iowa.