STEVENSON, Md.— Led by a ninth-place finish from sophomore Ashley Bitler, Eastern University Women's Cross Country raced to a ninth-place finish at the MAC Championships.

Bitler finished the 6K course in 23:13.3 and earned First-Team All-Honors with her season best performance. She  passed 10 competitors between her first mile split and the finish. It is the second All-MAC honor for Bitler, who was the MAC Runner of the Week last week and finished in 23rd at the Championships last fall.

Tierra Hill passed 15 racers between the 1.6k and the finish to be the second scorer for the Eagles. Hill ran 25.22 which was just a few seconds off her season-best performance.  Ashley Medina came through as Eastern's third runner with a time of 26:03.4. A season-best by nearly a minute.

Kayleigh Newsome and Gisella Croge also turned in season-best performances to finish as the fourth and fifth scorers. Helena Stoffel beat her career-best mark by 38 seconds and and Ava Mella also ran a season-best time.
The ladies were able to progress as a team throughout the championship race, moving from a 12th place position to a final team placement of 9th.

"I know this women's team has been fighting through many unforeseen circumstances that made our arrival at Championships just a little bit harder today," Head Coach Samantha David said after the race. "I never doubted their ability to surprise themselves and find the strength they have been building all season. On the line, the ladies were ready to compete and empty their tanks on the course."

"I am proud of how each of these women fought on the course today," she continued. "Today was about seeing what we are made of, and celebrating the success of what happens when we put our heads down and compete for something bigger than ourselves."

The Eastern women will look to build on that positive momentum as they prepare for the NCAA Regional meet at Lehigh in two weeks.