College of Charleston opened the 2006 cross country season with a second place finish in the men’s division and a third place finish in women’s division at the University of South Carolina Invitational here on Friday.

“I was pretty pleased with the finishes,” said fourth year head coach Amy Shuckert. “The freshmen ran great.”

Max Gustaitis paced the Cougars with a time of 15:50 for second place in the men’s race, while Katie Hedley clocked a time of 18:37 to finish third in the women’s race.

Rounding out the top five for the CofC men were J.C Koziel with a time of 16:14 for ninth place, Michael Rella with a time of 16:15 for 10th, John Young with a time of 16:18 for 12th and Tim Faugl with a time of 16:20 for 15th place.

On the women’s side, Karen Corson followed Hedley with a time of 18:55 for a seventh place finish, while Amy Laughlin finished 16th with a time of 19:11, Wells Trompeter clocked 19:23 to post 23rd place and Ashley Arnold finished 26th with a time of 19:30 to round the top five.

The cross country team will run in The Citadel Invitational on Sept. 8 at James Island County Park.

Wilson Wins Individual Title at USC Invitational as Men’s Cross Country Finish Third, Gatewood Sets School Record as Women Place Fifth

Columbia, S.C. ? The old and the young shined for The Citadel Friday evening at the USC Cross Country Invitational as senior Will Wilson returned to his hometown of Columbia to win the men’s race with a time of 15:47, helping the men’s team finish third. Meanwhile, freshman Kathryn Gatewood opened up her collegiate career with a school record time of 18:59 as she finished 10th overall while the women’s team placed fifth.

The men’s race was a battle of Southern Conference teams as Elon, the College of Charleston and The Citadel finished 1-2-3, respectively. The Citadel’s third place finish was propelled by Wilson’s individual title and senior Matt Holmes’ fourth place finish (16:06) as all five scoring runners for The Citadel finished in the top 20.

“Tonight’s race was a good opening to our season,” said head coach Jody Huddleston. “Will Wilson ran a really good race. He had a strong kick at the end of to edge the College of Charleston runner. He ran very well. Matt Holmes also did a good job. He was injured last year and to come out and finish fourth is an excellent showing by him.”

The women’s team had a successful race as well as they finished in fifth, behind fourth-place finisher Clemson. Host South Carolina won the women’s team race overall while Elon finished second and the College of Charleston placed third.

Gatewood’s school record time placed her 10th overall while fellow knob (freshman) Natalie Wolin placed 24th as the Toledo, Ohio native finished with a time of 19:25. Sarah Strickland placed 35th for the Bulldogs, running 19:47, while Laura Hewston ran 19:59 as she finished 46th.

“Katheryn Gatewood did a great job tonight,” said Huddleston. “To have two freshmen finish 1-2 for use is a big surprise. We had several personal records set tonight, including Amanda Rawl and Laura Hewston. We ran very competitively tonight as we had four girls run times under 20 minutes ? that’s something we’ve never done.”

The Citadel returns to action on Friday, Sept. 8 as the Cadets return to Charleston, S.C., to host the Bulldog Duals between The Citadel and their cross-town rival, the College of Charleston. That race is set to begin at 5:30 p.m.

Elon Men Win Gamecock Cross Country Invitational

Friday, September 01, 2006

COLUMBIA, S.C. ? Paced by four top-10 individual finishes, the Elon men’s cross country squad claimed the title at the Gamecock Cross Country Invitational hosted by South Carolina on Friday night. Adam Lindsey placed third in the 5K race with a time of 16:05 to lead the Phoenix.

Eric Lewandowski finished fifth with a time of 16:07 and teammate Brian Hunt, running in his first collegiate race, placed 6th with a 16:08 time. Eric Garren ran to an eight-place finish with a time of 16:14 to round out Elon’s top-10 finishers. Jason MacCollum finished with a time of 16:17 for 11th place.

Justin Garren placed 32nd with a time of 17:08 while Will Bertram placed 37th and ran a time of 17:23.

Elon finished first, earning 33 points, with Southern Conference foes College of Charleston (48 points) and The Citadel (50 points) finishing second and third, respectively.

Flynn Wins Meet, Sets Elon Record; Team Places Second

Friday, September 01, 2006

COLUMBIA, S.C. ? Anna Mae Flynn ran a school-record time of 18:30 to win the Gamecock Cross Country Invitational and lead the squad to a second-place finish in a field of 16 teams.

Flynn bettered the existing school record of 18:40.18 set by Alana Black last season, by 10 seconds and bested her personal record by 15 seconds.

Caitlin Beeler, running in her first collegiate race, place ninth with a time of 18:58. Katelyn Ealer finished 17th with a time of 19:12, setting a personal best. Jessica Doan finished 20th with a personal-best time of 19:18. Alissa Wilke also ran a personal best with a time of 19:20 and a 22nd-place finish.

Colleen McCarthy (28th/19:40), Amy Sulser (36th/19:49), and Alana Morro (76th/21:09) all also set personal-best times.

Katie White ran a time of 19:57 for a 42nd-place finish while Kelly Chencharik placed 59th with a time of 20:33. Meaghan Dolan ran a time of 20:46 and placed 65th. Caroline Corbyons finished 71st with a time of 21:00 and Meghan Atkinson placed 88th with a 21:58 time.

Elon finished with 65 points, coming is behind only South Carolina with 38 points. Elon finished ahead of College of Charleston (3rd/70 points), Clemson (4th/106 points) and The Citadel (5th/150 points).

Women's Cross Country Finishes Fourth in Covered Bridge Open

For Immediate Use
Friday, September 01, 2006

BOONE, N.C.- The Wildcat women's cross country team opened its 2006 season with a fourth-place finish at the Covered Bridge Open on Friday evening, hosted by Appalachian State University at the State Field Farms in Boone.

The Wildcats placed four runners amongst the top-25 finishers. Sophomore Caroline Sanker led Davidson's team with an 11th place finish (18:41:83), while Sophomore Lucy Rogers finished 18th (19:32:18), junior Megal Atias finished 21st (19:39:94) and sophomore Emily King finished 23rd (19:48:58).

Florida State University finished as meet champions, with four runners in the top10. Amy Huss placed fourth (18:16.54), followed by Barbara Parker in fifth (18:32.95), Jessica Crate in ninth (18:40.11), and Kirsten Hager rounding out the top 10 (18:41.15).

The women's cross country team will return to action on Sept. 16, as they make the short trip to the Asics/Winthrop University Invitational in Rock Hill, S.C.

GSU sees Eighth Place Finish in First Meet of the 2006 Season

COLUMBIA, S.C. ? Coming in eighth place, the Georgia Southern Eagles saw an impressive finish in their first meet of the 2006 season at the Gamecock Invitational in Columbia, S.C. Friday evening (Sept. 1).

The event welcomed 16 teams and a total of 130 participants running the 5K path.  GSU saw three runners place in the top 50 yesterday.  Abby Bloom, a junior from Snellville, Ga. was the first Eagle to pass the finish line coming in 27th with a time of 19:33.  Laura Fuller, a freshman from Cartersville, Ga. completed the first race of her college career in 19:55, coming in 37th.  Rounding out the top 50 was sophomore Danielle Shaurette with a time of 20:02.

Also competing in the invitational were senior Jessica Kerzie and freshmean Jessica McNeal.  They both finished the Gamecock invitational in less than 24 minutes, with times of 20:11 and 23:37, respectively. 

Of the 16 teams competing, host University of South Carolina took first place with a score of 38.  Three of their five runners finished in the top ten.  Southern Conference rivals Elon and the College of Charleston took second place and third place with scores of 65 and 70, respectively. 

The Eagles will have two weeks to prepare for their next race on Sept. 15 when they will travel to Tuscaloosa, Ala. for the Crimson Classic.  Competition is scheduled to start at 5 p.m.

Men's Cross Country Opens Up 2006 Season

For Immediate Use
Saturday, September 02, 2006

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Davidson men's cross country team began its 2006 season by running in the Charlotte Relays at McAlpine-Greenway Park, hosted by the Charlotte 49ers on Saturday, Sept. 3. The Wildcats finished third among the five collegiate teams that ran in the relays.

The relay teams consisted of two men who each ran a 5K leg. The team of seniors Douglas Noreen (Apex, N.C.) and Alex Varner (San Rafael, Calif.) had the top time for Davidson with an 11th place finish (32.04.7), just ahead of the Wildcat teams of sophomore Lance Harden (Apex, N.C.) and freshman Daniel Bush (Jacksonville, Fla.) and junior Sam Morris (Seattle, Wash.) and freshman Chet Howland (Asheville, N.C.). Harden and Bush crossed the finish line in 12th, while Morris and Howland were right behind them.

As a team, the Wildcats finished third with Virginia Intermont winning the race. Matt Neff and Andrew Fuller of Virginia Intermont won the individuals with a time of 30:43.7.

Davidson takes a week off before getting back out on the trails when they head to the Winthrop Invitational on Sept. 16. The Wildcats earned a second place showing last season at the invitational.

Team Scores
Virginia Intermont 7
Charlotte 14
Davidson 27
UNC Asheville 36
UNC Greensboro 36