NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. -- The Trine men's cross country team won Manchester University's Hokum Karem in the season-opening race Thursday night.
The Thunder have now won the race three years in a row. The Hokum Karem format features pairs of runners alternating one-mile laps around the course. Each runner in the pairing runs four miles for a combined eight-mile distance. Trine runners combined to earn the team 11 points, good enough to edge Manchester by four points. Scores were added by totaling up the placement from the top three pairs from each school, with the lowest total earning the victory.
The top pairing of Thunder runners was made up of Adam Schaaf (Greentown, Ind. / Eastern) and Kody Snyder (Burnettsville, Ind. / Twin Lakes). The duo placed second with a combined time of 40:26.7, an average of a 5:03 mile. Each runner closed the race with their best time on the final lap, including a 4:52 clip from Schaaf in his final mile.
Following with a fourth-place finish was the duo of Jonathan Phillips (Royal Center, Ind. / Pioneer) and Jordan Zamarron (Ionia, Mich. / Ionia). The sophomores combined for a time of 40:43.4. The duo averaged a 5:05 mile pace.
A fifth-place finish from seniors Aaron Mast (Ligonier, Ind. / West Noble) and Garrett Benedict (Greenfield, Ind. / Greenfield Central) sealed the victory. Benedict closed things out with a 4:55 mile on his final lap to give the veterans an overall time of 40:45.4.
Team standings from the race are listed below.
1. Trine - 11
2. Manchester - 15
3. Wabash - 25
4. Huntington - 27
Click Here for Complete Results.
The Thunder returns to action Friday, Sep. 9 at the Indiana Wesleyan University Twilight Classic. The men's race is scheduled for 5:45 p.m.