Furman Cross Country Teams Win Citadel Invitational
CHARLESTON, S.C. -- The Furman men's and women's cross country teams won the Citadel Invitational, held Saturday at James Island County Park in Charleston, S.C. Paladin junior Lee Gilmer won the men's meet, posting a time of 26:13.92 on the 8K course. Junior Chloe Kowalksi led the Furman women's team, posting a time of 18:58.67 on the 5K course for second place in the individual competition.
Senior Charlie McGoogan placed second in the men's meet with a time of 26:33.67, while sophomore Wilkerson Given took fifth place with a time of 26:55.90. Junior Jay Miller turned in a time of 27:19.91 for ninth place, and junior Chris Caldwell placed 12th with a time of 27:47.56. Freshman Jack Klecker also placed in the top 20 for the Paladins, taking 15th place with a time of 27:50.05.
Senior Jenna Callahan placed third in the women's meet with a time of 18:59.11, while junior Brooke Mosteller took fifth place for the Paladins after turning in a time of 19:28.21. Freshman Catherine Burton placed 10th with a time of 20:01.70, while junior Charlee Coggins was 12th with a time of 20:05.76. Sophomore Haley Gray finished 15th after recording a time of 20:21.52, followed by junior Rebecca Shelton in 16th place with a time of 20:21.52. Junior Erin Barker also finished among the top 20, placing 18th with a time of 20:23.13.
The Paladins will play host to the Gene Mullin Furman Cross Country Invitational on Oct. 9 in Greenville, S.C.
Cougars Record Runner-Up Finishes
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Running on a familiar course proved beneficial to the College of Charleston men's and women's cross country teams as they placed six athletes in the top-10, including an individual win for freshman Dena O'Brien. Junior Chris Bailey was the top finisher on the men's side coming in third. Both teams finished runner-up at the Citadel Invitational on Saturday morning at James Island County Park.
CofC head coach Amy Seago said she was happy with the way her teams competed.
"It was a pretty good day for us," she said. "I felt like we accomplished some of the forward motion we needed, in getting a couple of people to step up. I think this will build the teams confidence. I think we have some forward momentum we can work with now."
O'Brien passed a pack of four runners she was with halfway through the 5k race and took first in the women's race with a time of 18:19.77, 16 seconds faster than her nearest competitor.
Junior Callen Powers set a career-best with her fourth-place finish of 19:11.39 and fellow junior Kristen Wolfe also finished in the top-10 with a 10th place time of 19:47.36. Also competing for the women were McKenna Nokes (14th, 20:13.2), Kristin Jenkins (23rd, 20:29.82) and Tierney Willard (34th, 21:39.37)
On the men's side Bailey took third in 26:26.82 in the 8k race, finishing only three seconds out of second-place. Bailey ran under 27 minutes for the third meet this season. Junior Alexander Hill (27:00.13) and freshman Andrew Nelson (27:00.89) finished six and seventh for the Cougars. Also finishing in the top-25 were Jeff Crain (19th, 28:05.09), David Lamberson (20th, 28:12.75) and Sam Metzger (21st, 28:15.78).
The Cougars return to racing next weekend, Friday Oct. 1 at UNC Charlotte for the Charlotte Invitational.
The Citadel Men Finish Third and Women Fourth at 30th Annual Will Wilson Invitational
Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Cross Country men's and women's team wrapped up the 30th Annual Will Wilson Citadel Invitational in third and fourth place, respectively, on Saturday morning at the James Island County Park in Charleston, S.C. For the third consecutive year, the men finished in third place with an average time of 27:35.90 and 57 points. The women finished fourth for the second straight year by an average time of 21:00.55 with 91 points.
Sophomore Kyle Keene led all Bulldogs as he finished in fourth place posting a time of 26:49.97. Four other Cadets finished in the top 20. Junior Wells Johnson followed coming in 10th place recording a time of 27:28.93, while sophomore Austin Waldrop finished the race in 11th place with a time of 27:40.11. Finishing in 16th place, sophomore John Gatewood ran 27:56.66 while classmate Atom Young rounded out the Bulldogs in the top 20 in 18th place with a time of 28:03.81.
Leading the women, freshman Danielle McKee ran a top 10 finish coming in eighth place with a time of 19:43.07. Senior captain Suzanne Gay rounded out the top 20 runners posting a time of 20:16.58 with a 15th place finish. Freshman Christina Shonbeck finished in 25th place with a time of 21:01.04, while Micah Wessinger ran in a time of 21:52.36 for a 35th place finish. Rounding out The Citadel runners, junior Erinn Carter finished in 37th place with a time of 22:09.70 and senior Sarah Stierwalt came in 43rd place with a time of 22:53.33.
Southern Conference opponent Furman was crowned this year's winner in both the men's and women's Division I race. In Division II, Savannah College of Art & Design won the men's race and Lenior-Rhyne won for the women. Lee Gilmer of Furman finished in first place among the men with a time of 26:13.93, and for the women, Dena O'Brien of the College of Charleston won with a time of 18:19.77.
The Bulldogs will next travel to Greensboro, N.C. on Saturday, Oct. 2 to compete in the Hagan Stone Classic. For more information on The Citadel Cross Country, visit the official website of The Citadel Athletics at www.CitadelSports.com.
Samford Bulldogs Fare Well At Brooks Memphis Twilight Cross Country Classic
MEMPHIS, Tenn. --- The Samford University cross country teams had a successful outing at the Brooks Memphis Twilight Cross Country Classic Saturday night. The women took fifth place while the men finished 16th.
The Bulldog women were led by Lauren D'Alessio and Hillary Neal who finished fourth and fifth, respectively. D'Alessio ran a time of 17:38.96 while Neal topped her time from last week with a time of 17:39.58 in the 5K race. Ina Ables came in 28th in her first meet of the 2010 season with a time of 18:39.31 while Deanna Zidar placed 36th with a time of 18:46.67.
Lillie Jackson came in 64th with a time of 19:14.07 followed by Claire Grogan in 65th place with a time of 19:14.52. Jillian Klassen came in 67th in 19:17.94 and Holly Benson placed 85th with a time of 19:37.94. In her first meet as a Bulldog, Brooke Smith placed 107th with a time of 20:00.00. Alli Keithan came in 113th with a time of 20:08.92. Lauren Ewart (20:19.68), Lauren Pilcher (20:26.07), Rachel Sims (20:30.51) and Madison Davis (21:33.37) rounded out the women's field for Samford.
"Our women had a bit of sickness through the team so we ran okay tonight," Samford head coach Rod Tiffin said. "We have to be more consistent and make every race count. It was great to see Ina back running and Hillary ran much better this week. Lauren also had another great race. We have to get prepared for battle each week and be consistent."
Stephen F. Austin took the team title on the women's side with 60 points followed by Eastern Kentucky (73), UAB (85) and Auburn (123). Samford tallied 134 points in fifth place while Arkansas State (197), South Alabama (245), Murray State (305), Harding (315) and Sam Houston State (331) rounded out the top ten in the field of 32 teams.
The men came in middle of the pack again this week, placing 16th out of a field of 30 teams. The Bulldogs were led by freshman Layton Dorsett who came in 65th with a time of 25:59.46 in the 8K race. Scott Cope followed in 70th place with a time of 26:05.88. James Graham placed 103rd with a time of 26:38.12 followed by Ramsey White with a time of 26:56.66 to take 124th place. Henry Stevens-Carty placed 155th with a time of 27:34.98 followed by Dan Hall (29:24.56) in 218th place and George Mardre (29:38.15) in 224th place.
"Our men ran great," Tiffin said. "I was really happy with the improvement they have made so far."
Eastern Kentucky placed first in the team standings with 53 points followed by Arkansas-Little Rock with 72 and Harding University with 88. Auburn (122) placed fourth and Stephen F. Austin (123) took fifth. South Alabama (186), San Jose State (274), Northern Kentucky (285), Berry College (328) and Central Arkansas (376) rounded out the men's top ten.
Samford is back in action again in Tennessee next weekend as the Bulldogs compete in the Chattanooga Front Runner Invitational.
Spartans Wrap Up Greensboro XC Invitational
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Taylor Day posted the top time for the UNCG men's team and Jenna Paley and Jade Farlow led the women's team on Saturday afternoon at the Greensboro XC Invitational at Hagen Stone Park.
"The conditions today were really tough," said head coach Linh Nguyen. "With the college races in the afternoon, the weather was a big factor. The temperature was over 90, with a considerable amount of humidity. This affected us as we lost two guys to heat exhaustion. Overall it was a really tough day and times were slow for everybody who ran."
"I think the women ran really well considering the 1 p.m. start time. Jenna and Jade worked together for a lot of the race and really competed well. Taylor Day ran well in leading the men and Tyron Alston and Ben Constantinides both ran tough races. Today was definitely a day where the times were not indicative of effort and ability."
Day led the men's team as he finished in 14th place in a time of 28:03.2. Tyron Alston wasn't too far behind as he came in 23rd place after running a time of 29:03.1.
Paley paced the women's team on Saturday as she came home in 13th place with a time of 20:22.7. Farlow was right behind her as she ran a 20:29.0 to finish in 15th place.
The Spartans will return to competition next weekend as they compete at the Greater Louisville Classic on Saturday.