MIAC Release

ST. PAUL, Minn. - The 2008 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Women's Cross Country Championship was run on Saturday with the Bethel women finishing second overall and Marie Borner (Jr., Cottage Grove, Minn.) claiming individual honors. She, along with Alex Potter (So., Windom, Minn.), Kristin Mork (So., Cambridge, Minn.), and Heather Jelen (Sr., Sioux Falls, S.D.) finished among the top 15 runners at the championship race to earn All-MIAC honors. Meanwhile, head coach Jim Timp earned MIAC Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year honors.

As part of a conference-wide sportsmanship initiative, the MIAC announced the third annual All-MIAC Sportsmanship team for Women's Cross Country. Members of the All-MIAC Sportsmanship team are selected by their coaches and teammates as individuals who demonstrate ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field of competition. Potter was Bethel's representative on the team.

Marie Borner.jpg" alt="" />Borner repeated as individual champion at the MIAC Championships this past Saturday at Como Golf Course in St. Paul, Minn., thus making her the 2008 MIAC Most Valuable Athlete. Her time of 21:11 shattered the previous 6,000 meter course record of 21:51, which was held by former NCAA Champion Hailey Harren of Gustavus. She led Bethel to a second-place team finish, which is the highest finish in school history. Borner was a 2007 NCAA All-American in cross country, and also earned NCAA All-American status in outdoor track and field, as well as indoor track and field where she is the defending national champion in the mile run. This is her second consecutive All-MIAC honor.


Alex Potter.jpg" alt="" />Potter had a stellar sophomore year, placing second overall in the MIAC Championships with a time of 21:56 for the 6,000-meter course. She placed ninth out of 328 runners at the 46th annual Les Duke Invitational on September 13, and her previous season-best time was 21:59 at the UW-Oshkosh Brooks Invitational on October 18. This is Potter's first All-MIAC honor for both performance and sportsmanship.




Kristin Mork.jpg" alt="" />Mork is another key member of a strong sophomore class of runners for Bethel. She finished 14th overall in the MIAC Championship race with a time of 23:00. Mork had a season-best time of 22:50 in the Brooks Invitational, and previously had a season-best finish of 21st place out of 173 runners at the Hanover College Pre-National Meet on October 4. This is Mork's first All-MIAC honor.





Heather Jelen.jpg" alt="" />Jelen did not compete in cross country her junior year due to studying in Washington, D.C., and was sorely missed. This season, she finished the MIAC Championship race in 15th place overall with a time of 23:00 to round out the largest group of all-conference runners in Bethel history. Jelen finished in the top 30 of each race, with two top-20 finishes at both the Hanover Pre-National Meet and the Brooks Invitational, where she had a season-best time of 22:17.




Jim Timp.jpg" alt="" />In his fourth year as women's cross country head coach, Timp earned 2008 MIAC Coach of the Year as the Royals placed second on Saturday after running a spectacular race. The Royals had four runners in the top 15, and missed becoming conference champions for the first time in team history by just two points. St. Thomas won the team title with 66 points, head of Bethel's 68, and Carleton's 71. The second place finish is the best Bethel has ever performed at the conference championship meet. As a testament to just how far the program has come, two years ago, the team finished ninth overall, and their best finish before Timp took over was third place back in 1994. Timp has previously earned MIAC Indoor Track and Field Coach of the Year honors for the 2007 season.