WIDEFIELD, Colo. - The Southwestern University Pirates women's cross country team demonstrated promise and achieved new heights in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Championship meet this morning in Colorado.

Southwestern earned a fifth place finish in the SCAC with 132 points while Colorado College took five of the top 10 spots and earned the program's first cross country title since 2016 as the Tigers defeated two-time defending champion Trinity University.  Trinity came in second, followed by The University of Dallas and Texas Lutheran.  

"I can't express how proud I am of the ladies that toed the line for us this morning. We talked a lot about giving our best, and enjoying the moment. I believe the women stayed true to that at this championship," Head Coach Steven Cary said. "Each young lady pulled their weight out on that course. I'd say this was the best performance by our women thus far this season. The ladies maintained the fifth spot in the conference from last year, which is huge considering that no one on this year's team competed last season."

In her first collegiate race, Emma Cooper showcased her natural talent, placing in the top 10 in the conference. Cooper, who has been unable to compete in most of the season's races, came in seventh with a time of 24:07, making the 2019 Women's Cross Country All-Conference Team. 

"She ran a great race, staying in the front pack the entire time. She's well-deserving of the recognition. We're certainly very proud of her," Cary said. "As I've stated before, our goal this season was to get better every week and every race." 

Emma Pertuit, who has consistently showcased her raw talent as a first year, placed 28th out of 61 runners, with her second-fastest 6k time of 26:29. Lauren Calzado, who has also shown her dedication and progression through every race, finished with her fastest career time of 27:50.  

Ending the last race of the season, the Southwestern women's Pirates left the championships on a high note with new improvements and promise from the young talented runners. 

"We've done that to this point, and want to continue to progress 2 weeks from now at the region meet in Memphis," Carry noted.

2019 Women's Cross Country All-Conference Team

1. Anna Wilgenbusch, University of Dallas - 22:55.5

2. Emily Dwyer, Colorado College - 23:28.3

3. Brianna Ratliff, Trinity University - 23:30.9

4. Jordan Juran, Trinity University - 23:44.2

5. Alexia Preston, Colorado College - 23:47.1

6. Na'ama Nevo, Colorado College - 24:04.9

7. Emma Cooper, Southwestern University - 24:07.8

8. Clare Quinn, Colorado College - 24:11.0

9. Claire Tobin, Colorado College - 24:24.3

10. Elaine Kaster, Trinity University - 24:26.1

11. Olive Pertuit, Trinity University - 4:27.0

12. Megan Koch, Colorado College - 24:30.2

13. Kylee Garcia, Texas Lutheran University - 24:36.1

14. Sarah Pokelwaldt, Colorado College - 24:37.8