Baumann Earns Podium Finish at Great Lakes Challenge

GRAND RAPIDS, MI—With the conference meet and a possible trip to nationals just around the corner, it's "go time" for Lenny Baumann and the Jaguars. Baumann lowered his school-record time in the 8K to 26:02.00 in finishing third out of 263 runners at the 13th Annual Great Lakes Challenge.

The Challenge lives up to its name for a variety of reasons. The trip to Michigan is the team's longest in terms of distance and upon arrival, runners face one of the largest fields in the country. Over 50 teams, many ranked in the Top 25, were divided into Maroon and White Divisions.

Competing in the White race against 11 ranked opponents, Governors State finished with 760 points to place 28th out of 30 teams. Baumann avoided any log jams by staying in the lead pack and finished just seven seconds behind race winner Josphat Chumba of Judson and runner-up Isaac Sytsma of Calumet St. Joseph as the CCAC swept the top three positions.

Other scorers for GSU were Dante Miller (35:38.10), Miguel Navarrete (35:38.50) and Eric Espinoza (36:09.10).

GSU's lineup also featured four runners making their season debuts: Bryan Perez (who scored), Edson Gonzalez, Christopher Groesbeck and Isaac Alatorre—all members of the soccer team.

"Lenny, our captain, again had a phenomenal race. He was actually leading for a while," said GSU Head Coach Kevin Kredens. "Dante had his best time of the season and is ready to really improve for conference."

Governors State will have two weeks to prepare for the CCAC Championships, to be held November 6 at Aspen Ridge in Bourbonnais.