BETTENDORF, Iowa – Graduate student Allison Ramsey finished third individually and the University of St. Francis women's cross country team placed second as a team at the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday morning at Crow Creek Park.  Fve USF runners in total placed among the Top 15 finishers to earn all-league honors on the day.

Olivet Nazarene University claimed the meet title after placing four runners in the Top 10 and earning the low score of 33 points.  The Fighting Saints totaled 57 points.  Viterbo University (Wis.) rounded out the top three teams with 91 points.  A total of 85 runners representing eight schools competed in the event.

Ramsey earned all-conference honors by posting a time of 22:21.4.  Aleigha Garrison of Olivet Nazarene secured CCAC Runner of the Year honors by topping the performance list with a time of 22:09.

Four other Saints also finished among the Top 15 runners to earn all-league plaudits.  Dyannara Franco, Riley Fleming, Riley Mach and Nicole Vollrath completed the 6K course in succession, securing the 12th through 15th placements.  Franco was first in line, finishing in 23:20.8, with Ford registering a time of 23:23.6.  Mach crossed the finish line six seconds later at 23:29.1, while Vollrath authored a personal best with her time of 23:31.3.

Up Next
With her third-place overall finish, Ramsey qualified to compete individually at the NAIA Women's Cross Country National Championships, which will take place in Columbia, Mo. on Friday, Nov. 22.  By securing the CCAC title, Olivet Nazarene received the league's automatic bid to nationals.  As the current No. 17-ranked team in the nation, St. Francis is still in contention to receive an at-large bid, but will have to wait until the qualifying teams are announced on Monday night for confirmation.

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