WINCHESTER, Va.- On a nice, cool Halloween morning, the runners of EMU Cross Country put their fitness to the test in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) championships. The championship meet was held at the tough and hilly course at Kernstown Battlefield just outside of Winchester, Va.
In the women's 6k (3.73 miles), it was a career day for
Erin Loker as the junior from Harrisonburg placed fourth overall in the conference, earning All-ODAC First Team honors for her outstanding effort. Loker is the first All-ODAC First Team standout for women's cross country since Michaela Mast finished runner-up back in 2017.
Loker's exemplary individual performance also helped boost the Royals to one of their best team showings of the season, placing sixth as a team.
Ester Zar of Batten cruised to the individual ODAC championship with an impressive time of 21:44.1, while Washington & Lee successfully defended the women's team title with the low score of 46 points, holding off Lynchburg (64 pts.) and Batten (66 pts.).
Highlights
- Team Score: 6th of 10 (194 pts.)
- Loker set a new 6k personal record in her All-ODAC First Team effort, clocking in at 23:21.7 on the challenging course at Kernstown Battlefield. She is now sixth all-time in EMU history for the women's 6k.
- Claire Hurst held our own against a great field of ODAC runners, finishing 50th overall in a time of 27:08.7. Hurst was over three minutes faster and placed 31 positions higher than she did at the 2025 ODAC Championships.
- Zoe Clymer (69th/30:08.7), Sarah Wheeler (73rd/31:25.4) and Fortie Chipeta (82nd/39:51.1) completed the lineup of runner for the Royal women at ODACs.
What's Next
EMU Cross Country will continue their slate of postseason meets on Saturday, Nov. 14, when they compete at the NCAA Division III South Region Championships at Panorama Farms in Earlysville, Va. The meet will follow the same time schedule as the ODAC Championships, with the women's 6k at 10 a.m. followed by the men's 8k at 11 a.m.
To keep up to date with everything surrounding the EMU cross country program this year, follow EMU Athletics on Instagram, like EMU Athletics on Facebook or visit our website.
