On Saturday, October 26th, Seneca Polytechnic hosted the 2024 OCAA Cross Country Championships at the college's King Campus in King City, Ontario. In true Bruins spirit, both the men's and women's cross-country teams pushed themselves to the limit and achieved spectacular results.
Among the 60 runners in the women's individual 6km race, it was an incredible moment when Mette Siemens, a third-year in the Crafts and Design program, won the gold medal. She was the first to cross the finish line in 23 minutes and 47 seconds, beating her 10th place finish at last year's 2023 OCAA Championships by more than a minute. She was also named to the women's OCAA All-Ontario First-Team.
In addition to Siemens were Shaeley Barrios Berrera (30:16), Simone Hogeveen (32:52), Hannah Knight (33:56), and Carley Eveline (34:52). Combining the team's respective scores, the women's team claimed 7th place overall.
The men's individual race exhibited outstanding results as well, with two more Bruins being named to the men's All-Ontario teams: Kinnon Ringler (First-Team) and Karl Olivo (Second-Team). Out of 75 runners, Ringler and Olivo claimed 7th and 8th respectively. The duo completed the 8km course in 28 minutes and 34 seconds, crossing the finishing line hand-in-hand.
A first-year in the Osteopathy program, this is Olivo's first season with the Bruins, while second-year Ringler of the Bachelor of Craft & Design program marks his second season in Double-Blue.
Also competing were teammates Danny Ghaliyani (31:27), Aaron Martin (34:02), Cade Ferguson (35:40), and Wilson Le (36:42). Together with Ringler and Olivo, each member's race time contributed to the men's 6th place team finish.
Siemens and the Men's team now head for the 2024 CCAA Cross-Country Running National Championships in Windsor, ON where St. Clair will be hosting the event from November 8-9. These wins mark Ringler's first back-to-back Nationals and Siemens' second.
Best of luck to all of our amazing athletes!
Written by: Jasmin Ibanez, Bruins Student Marketing Team