Men's Cross Country Southern Conference

SoCon Men's Cross Country Capsules for Sept. 24th-25th

September 24, 2005 - Furman Cross Country Sweeps Honors At The Citadel Invitational

CHARLESTON, S.C. - The Furman cross country team swept both the men’s and women’s team and individual honors in a dominating performance Saturday morning at The Citadel Invitational in Charleston, S.C.

The Paladins placed six runners in the top ten led by senior Tyler Johnson who claimed individual honors.  Johnson, a native of Knoxville, Tenn., completed the 8K course in 26:23.83 to take top honors while teammate Eric Albrecht (3rd), Sam Robinson (5th), Andrew Orr (6th), Joe Tenini (9th) and John Dowlen (10th) also scored top ten finishes.

Sophomore Page Bridges scored her first career race victory in the women’s 5K with a time of 19:16.25.  Bridges topped fellow teammate and second place finisher Mo Campbell by just nine seconds.

The Citadel claimed second place behind Furman in both the men’s and women’s races.

Furman will take a week off before returning to action October 8, when it hosts the annual Furman Invitational at the Furman University Golf Course.

Sept. 24, 2005 - The Citadel Claims Second in 24th Annual Citadel Invitational

CHARLESTON, S.C. - The Citadel men's and women's cross country teams each placed second at The Citadel Invitational held Saturday morning at James Island County Park. Furman University took the top spot in each race with South Carolina State rounding out the top three for Division I. Wingate came in first in Division II men's while Carson-Newman placed first for the women.

"We ran a great race to finish second," said head cross country coach Jody Huddleston. "The heat got to a couple of the guys and they didn't run as well as we had hoped, but all in all it was a good race."

Will Wilson led the way for the Bulldogs in the 8K coming in second overall in a time of 26:39.98. Megan Jenkins was the first finisher for the women in the 5K race as she took the third spot running a 19:47.51.

Matt Holmes (27:16.43) and Marcus Butler (27:57.72) each placed in the top ten for the men finishing fourth and eighth, respectively. Making the top ten for the women were Laura Hewston (19:48.88), Erin Ritter (20:20.34) and Sarah Strickland (20:43.69). Strickland's time marked a personal record while Caitlin Lincer also ran a personal best time of 22:41.66.

"Butler, Wilson and Holmes had a great race," commented Huddleston. "The girls also did a great job as five finished in the top 15. We ran some of the fastest times for this point in the year."

Rachel Bowman from Wando High School led the high school JV's with a time of 23:39.52. For the varsity girls, Elizabeth Tempel from Beaufort High School led the girls running a 19:44.11. Rick Scheff from St. Pius Catholic School paced the varsity boys with a 16:39.39. St Pius took first in the JV and varsity boys' races while Lexington High School took first in the girls' 5K.

"We had a great turnout," said Huddleston. "We had 31 high schools participate, the most in the 11 year history that high schools have competed. We had about an average number of colleges with 15, but we had the largest field overall with over 800 entries."

Next up, the Bulldogs will travel to Orlando, FL to compete in the Disney Invitational on Saturday, October 8.

September 24, 2005 - WOMMACK SETS RACE RECORD AT GREATER LOUISVILLE CLASSIC

LOUISVILLE, KY. -- Chattanooga senior Shannon Wommack set an event record to lead the Lady Mocs to a second place finish at the Greater Louisville Classic at the E.P. "Tom" Sawyer Park Saturday morning.

Wommack competed the 5K race in a time of 17:03.81, more than a minute faster than the previous event record of 18:04.70 set in 2003. Senior Ellen Davis was the second Chattanooga across the line in ninth place at 18:21.04.

The Lady Mocs scored 97 points to finish behind Ohio State by 28 points. Cedarville University was third and Xavier took fourth. Thirty-two women's teams competed in the Gold Division race.

Jamie Dinkins placed 19th and Sabrina Lefort was 33rd. Katie Williams rounded out the scoring five in 35th place at 19:10.50.

In the men's race, Senior Ian Mayne placed fourth overall and the men took sixth in the 35-team race. Mayne ran the 8K race in a time of 24:31.81. Colin Sullivan placed eighth overall at 24:46.17. Jeff Taylor placed 63rd in the race followed by the fourth UTC runner, Michael Mentz, in 70th. Senior Linas Salkauskas was 93rd in a time of 26:34.37 to round out the scoring.

The Tennessee men took first in the event with 52 points followed by host University of Louisville with 73 points. The U.S. Naval Academy was third, Georgia State was fourth and Aquinas College was fifth.

Chattanooga will return to competition October 8 at the Auburn Invitational in Auburn, Ala.

September 24, 2005 - CofC Finishes 13th at Great American XC Festival

The College of Charleston's men's and women's cross country teams finished 13th in the 2005 Great American Cross Country Festival in Cary, N.C. on Saturday.

The men's race was an 8K event, while the women ran a 5K course.

Max Gustaitis led the Cougars finishing 41st with a time of 26:11.80. The women's top finisher was Wells Trompeter who ran a time of 19:51.50 (55th).

The Cougars will compete in the Disney Invitational in Orlando on Saturday, October 8th.

 

September 24, 2005 - Elon Men Finish Second, Tumbleston Ties Record

GREENVILLE, N.C.- John Tumbleston ran to a sixth-place finish with a school record-tying time to lead the Elon men's cross country team to a second-place finish at the McAlister Deli Invitational hosted by East Carolina on Saturday. Tumbleston's time of 25:47.13 on the 8K course ties the Elon school record.

Jason MacCollum placed 13th for the Phoenix with a time of 26:50.27 while Ricky Myers finished 17th, recording a time of 27:07.06. Adam Lindsey ran a time of 27:08.04 for a 18th-place finish and Eric Lewandowski finished 21st with a time of 27:19.33 to round out Elon's top-five.

Justin Garren finished 24th with a time of 27:43:54 and Adam Clontz ran a time of 28:20.61 for a 28th-place finish while Malcolm White recorded a time of 28:45.99 and a 31st-spot finish. Danny Quinn (34th/29:24.43), Jarred Adams (36th/29:35.11) and Will Bertram (40th/30:43.01) all competed well for the Phoenix.

Elon finished in second place behind High Point and ahead of East Carolina, UNC Wilmington and Barton.

The men return to action on Saturday, Oct. 8 at the Walt Disney Classic in Orlando, Fla.

September 25, 2005 - Catamounts Run in Great American Cross Country Festival Over the Weekend

CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Western Carolina's men's and women's cross country teams participated in a day full of events at the Great American Cross Country Festival, held in Cary, N.C. The Catamount men ran 15th in the University event, while the women finished 12th overall.

North Carolina State claimed the men's team title, placing all-five scored runners inside the overall top 10 for a team score of 33. Norfolk State placed second with 81 points, followed by William & Marry (113), Coastal Carolina (153) and Virginia Commonwealth (155), rounding out the top five. Brigham Young was the top-finishing collegiate team in the women's 5-K, edging out N.C. State by one point, 108-to-109. The top two were followed by Campbell (126), Florida Atlantic (141), and William & Mary (145) in fifth.

For Western's men, senior Adam Puett led the way, posting the 12th-best Western Carolina men's 8-K time of 25:11 to place 14th overall, 13th when unattached runners were removed from the scoring list. His time ranks between marks set by former Catamount Ben Watkins (25:09, 2003) and Donnie Reuss (25:12, 1994). Puett was followed by sophomore Marcus Dunn with a time of 27:09.80, which placed him 85th overall, but scored in 72nd.

Rounding out Western's runners in the men's 8-K were freshman Jesse Ramirez (28:17.40, 114 (92nd)), redshirt-freshman Field Miller (28:20.70, 115 (93rd)), and sophomore Brian McLean (29:08.50, 128 (98th). As a team, the Catamounts averaged 27:37.64 over the course.

The Catamount women had two individuals post all-time top 30 5-K performances at the event. Sophomore Kerrie Savery led the way for Western, finishing 40th overall, but again was scored in 37th once unattached runners were purged. Her time of 19:24 ranks 26th quickest in Western's history, marking the second-time this season the Palm Harbor, Fla., native has placed on the historical chart. Freshman Ann Wagner also appears on the chart, crossing the line in 19:49 for a 53rd (49th) place showing that is good enough for 30th on the all-time list.

Rounding out the women's scorers were senior Deanna Kulesz (20:34.50 67 (61st)), sophomore Elizabeth Prevette (20:56.30, 77 (70th)), freshman Jenna Hester (21:28.20, 86 (76th)), and freshman Jenny Smith (22:43.50, 97 (87th)). As a team, the women averaged 20:26.42 over the 5-K course.

The Catamount cross country teams are back in action on Friday, Oct. 14 at the Blue Ridge Open in Boone, N.C. The men and women will compete against all the teams in the field, but will have a special side head-to-head battle with rival Appalachian State as they compete in their own version of the gridiron, "Battle for the Old Mountain Jug." The cross country teams have two mini-jugs that serve as the trophy for the top finishing team between WCU and ASU. Entering this year's Blue Ridge Open, the Mountaineers are in possession of both jugs, retaining the trophy on the women's side and regaining it from Western's men a year ago.