CULLOWHEE, N.C.- Caroline Safford placed in the top five in the women's competition, with Matthew Stephens, Nathan Boepple, Will Christiansen, and Jordan Haak placing in the top 15 on the men's side in the Rock and Rumble competition in Cullowhee over the weekend.
The competition was hosted by Western Carolina, as teams from Clemson, Tennessee, Wake Forest, Appalachian State and Lees-McRae also participated in the event.
Safford scored 8800, as she placed fifth out of 20 climbers in the women's bouldering event. The sophomore flashed four of her five climbs, which now adds to her total of nine competition flashes in her two bouldering events on the season.
Stephens, who missed the Brevard Boulder Bash due to injury, finished second overall with a score of 17500, which marks his best collegiate performance in a bouldering competition. Boepple, Christiansen and Haak placed 11th, 12th and 13th respectively, as the trio combined for 35500 points on the day.
Coach Travis Gray said this competition was the best showing from the team in the two years he has been at the helm of the program.
"This is the first competition of the last two seasons that I truly feel the team is coming together and living up to their fullest potential and abilities," said Gray.
The Crushers' next competition will be the Appalachian Regional Championship in Nashville, Tenn., as the team will look to defend their Regional Champions title from the 2017 season.
Picture credit: Linette Stephens