Furman women finish second, men third at Western Carolina Invitational
CULLOWHEE, N.C. - The Furman cross country teams opened the 2013 season Friday night at the Western Carolina Invitational in Cullowhee, N.C.
Eight of the Paladins’ 11 women and seven of the 15 Furman men competing in the meet were freshmen, who had a strong showing in their first collegiate meet. The Paladins finished second in the women’s meet with a score of 53 points, while the Furman men’s team scored 54 points for a third-place finish. Florida wrapped up first-place in both meets, sweeping the top five spots in the women’s race.
Paladin sophomore Sinead Haughey led all Furman runners, placing sixth in the women’s two-mile race with a time of 11:20.26. Furman placed three additional runners in the top-11 of the women’s race, as freshmen Allie Buchalski and Grace Tinkey recorded back-to-back finishes in seventh (11:20.57) and eighth (11:20.57) place, respectively, and freshman Anna McBride finished 11th with a time of 11:33.41
Rookie Laura Miller claimed 21st place, turning in a time of 11:57.80, followed by senior Catherine Burton in 22nd place at 11:58.28. Freshman Julia Rodriguez posted a time of 12:01.07 for 24th place, and rookie Ann Sisson was 28th after notching a time of 12:05.96. Freshman Maddie Wolfe (12:12.89) and junior Hannah Schilpp (12:14.13) finished seconds apart in 33rd and 35th positions, while rookie Haley Holan rounded out the Paladin team in 61st place (12:45.04).
Freshman Troy Reeder led the Furman men’s team, capturing eighth place with a time of 15:26.50 on the 5K course. The Paladins claimed spots ten through 13, as rookie Brock Baker finished tenth (15:27.43), followed by junior Tripp Hurt (15:27.82) in eleventh place, and freshmen Tanner Hinkle (15:29.08) and Connor Sorrells (15:30.33) in 12th and 13th place, respectively.
Senior James Perez turned in a time of 15:45.29 for 17th place, while fellow senior Jack Klecker placed 19th at 15:47.47. Junior Jack Morgan captured 22nd place (15:53.94), and freshman Nate Riech was 30th after posting a time of 16:12.41. Sophomore Jack Miller placed 32nd at 16:17.70, followed closely by junior William Ivey in 34th (16:20.20).
Rookie Sean Walker recorded a 41st-place finish with a time of 16:28.70, and Lee Shearer completed the freshman finishers in 44th place (16:33.70). Sophomore Bradley Gossett finished 55th (16:49.19), while senior Tyler Greathouse was 67th (17:15.37).
Elon women capture title, men take second at Wake Forest Relays
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The Elon women’s cross country team had a strong start to its 2013 season as the Phoenix captured the team title at the Wake Forest Relays on Friday, Aug. 30. The women won the title for the second straight year at the relay-style meet, while the men finished as the runner-up.
The Phoenix women earned nine points against its competition, finishing ahead of host Wake Forest (12 points) and Southern Conference foe UNCG (24 points). On the men’s side, the Phoenix had 12 points as the Demon Deacons won the men’s crown with nine points.
The women’s tandem of freshman Kimberly Johansen and junior Tereza Novotna won the meet with a time of 31:53. The men’s pairing of Luis Vargas and Ben Perron captured the men’s title after clocking a 36:00.
In third-place on the women’s side was sophomore Elyse Bierut and freshman Shelby Cuddeback with a time of 32:04. Crossing the line in fifth was the duo of Jenny Gallagher and Kaitlin Snapp, who posted a time of 32:15.
Brennan McDavid and Erin Macbeth finished seventh with a time of 34:04 followed by Sabina Bains and Jackie Madden with a 34:15 and in eighth. Kylie Womack and Kaitlin Stober finished 10th with a time of 34:38 while Amanda Parker and Emily Dunne was 11th after clocking in a 34:48.
On the men’s side, Nick Schneider and Ari Rothschild finished fifth with a time of 38:16. James Stevenson and Nick Foley were eighth with a 38:38, followed in ninth by Ian O’Leary and Adam Bernstein, who rounded out the men’s scores with a 38:44.
The Phoenix returns to the course to host its home event, the Elon Invitational, on Sept. 14. The meet will take place on the Elon cross country course with the women’s race scheduled for a 9 a.m. start.
UNCG Kicks off season at Wake Forest Relays
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The UNCG men's and women's cross country programs opened the 2013 season Friday evening at the Wake Forest Relays. The Spartans did not run a full squad in the relay-style race which saw two-person teams combined to run 9,000-meters in the women's race and 12,000-meters in the men's race.
The men's program ran four groups of two in the event with freshmen Max Bergstrom and Max Chandler combining for the top UNCG time of 40:18. Freshmen Dakarai Shipp and David Guthrie posted a time of 41:02, while John Elwood and JT Booker turned in a time of 42:22. Chris Murphy and Johnny Hodge rounded out the Spartans' runners with a time of 42:43 as each member of the twosome ran 6,000-meters.
The women's program saw three teams run with Shannon Hall and Samiiah Wilson leading the way with a time of 35:59 in the 9,000-meter course. Meredith Hicks and Katlyn Adkins added a time of 39:17 while Haley Wenos and Katie Miller turned in a time of 41:51.
The Spartans travel to the Elon Invitational Sep. 14 for their first true cross country event of the season before heading the Charlottesville Sep. 28 for the Panorama Farm Invitational.
Appalachian State men, women finish second at Covered Bridge Open
BOONE, N.C. – Appalachian State University men’s cross country placed second at the Covered Bridge Open on Friday. The Apps finished their first meet of the 2013 season behind Florida State University.
Senior James Howard-Smith finished third overall and first for the Mountaineers with a time of 25:46.60. Not far behind was junior Kyle McFoy, who finished in sixth-place with a time of 26:04.02. Junior Chris Garrett ended the race in 10th, while sophomore Andrew Vandenberg and senior Josh Cox placed 11th and 12th, respectively.
Florida State took home first place with a total of 19 points while the Black and Gold finished with 42. Virginia Military Institute took home third place with 77 points.
The Mountaineers will be back in action on Sept. 14 at the UNC Asheville Invitational in Swannonoa, N.C.
Appalachian State University women’s cross country began the 2013 season with a second place finish at the Covered Bridge Open on Friday. The Mountaineers finished the meet behind Florida State University.
Junior Kayla Schneider finished eighth overall and first for the Mountaineers with a time of 18:55.08. Not far behind were junior Justine Stocks and sophomore Shelby Howell. Stocks finished the race in 13th with a time of 19:05.01, while Howell finished in 14th with a time of 19:06.52.
Florida State took home first place with a total of 15 points while the Mountaineers ended with 59 points. East Caroline finished in third place with 70 points.
The Apps will be back in action on Sept. 14 at the UNC Asheville Invitational in Swannonoa, N.C.
Georgia Southern Finishes Ninth at Carolina Challenge
COLUMBIA, S.C.- Georgia Southern freshman Ashton Lord placed in the top 50 at the Carolina Challenge at Hilton Field on the grounds of Ft. Jackson in Columbia, S.C., as the Eagle Cross Country team started its 2013 season Friday evening. All eight Eagles competed in this meet as Georgia Southern opened the year with a ninth-place finish. This was the ninth-straight year the Eagles have started their season at this University of South Carolina-sponsored event.
Even though Georgia Southern has participated in this event for several years, race officials made drastic changes to the course to provide even more challenges for the competitors. Temperatures reached a high of around 90 as the women started the course. Peyton Holm took the number two spot for Georgia Southern as seven newcomers and senior returner Amanda Ventre will continue to build on today’s results over the next four meets.
The Eagles arrived on campus for preseason just a week before the start of University classes. Now with this first meet tackled, Georgia Southern will spend the next several weeks training and working on race strategy. The Eagles compete next Sept. 20th at the GSU Invitational.
Coastal Carolina nudged out South Carolina for the team win at the Carolina Challenge with 39 points to the Gamecocks’ 41. The Chanticleers had the top three runners in the meet.
The Citadel men, women finish sixth at Carolina Challenge
COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Citadel men's and women's cross country teams both finished sixth in the season opening Carolina Challenge 5k race in Columbia, S.C., on Friday evening at the Hilton Field in Fort Jackson.
The men's top finisher, Raeven Lantz, improved on last year's performance, earning seventh and crossing the finish line at 16:07. Ross Jordan (33rd place, 17:07) and Paul Fleckenstein (38th place, 17:26) finished second and third among the Bulldogs, respectively.
The men took sixth place out of 11 teams, running an average 5k time of 17:12.
Grant Smith, (39th, 17:26), Bo Hutchison (43rd, 17:54) and Andrew Furmanchik (46th, 18:03) also competed for the men.
Thompson led The Citadel women, placing 11th with a time of 19:33. Senior leader Danielle McKee's streak of 18 consecutive races leading the Bulldog women came to end as she finished in 31st place with a time of 20:24. Freshman Ashley Beach took 45th, crossing the finish line at 21:04.
The Bulldogs will take a week off before heading to Conway, S.C., to compete in the Coastal Carolina Invitational on Sept. 13.
Davidson takes top spot at Carolina Challenge
COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Davidson men's cross country team placed four runners in the Top 10 en route to victory at the season opening Carolina Challenge, hosted by the University of South Carolina Friday evening at Hilton Field on Fort Jackson.
Davidson compiled a score of 35 to convincingly win over runner-up College of Charleston, which totaled 64 points despite boasting the individual champion, Adam Seften (15:34.91)
Sophomore Daniel Samet paced the Wildcats on the 5K course with a fourth-place finish in 15 minutes, 58.94 seconds, and was closely followed by junior Whitner Chase in fifth (16:05.38) and junior Sal del Giudice in sixth (16:06.61). Freshman Walker Mogen claimed eighth in 16:12.35, while sophomore Ryan Phillips rounded-out the top-five scorers in 12th in 16:17.83. Senior Grayam Sailor-Tynes (14th place, 16:27.80) and junior Wesley Laytham (17th, 16:34.15) were able to increase Davidson's margin of victory as the squad's sixth and seventh finishers, respectively.
Coastal Carolina placed third with 69 points, while Mecklenburg County foe Charlotte was fourth with 111 points in the eight-team race.
Davidson will have a long layoff before competing in the Wake Forest Invitational Friday, Sept. 20.
Wofford men, women start season at Western Carolina Invitational
CULLOWHEE, N.C. – The Wofford women's team finished in seventh of 11 teams and the men placed 10th of 11 teams on Friday night in their opening race of the 2013 season at the Western Carolina Invitational. The women competed in a two mile course while the men ran in a 5K course.
The women were highlighted by senior Samantha Hughes, who took 10th overall with a time of 11:32:26. Senior runner Alyssa Burkert followed finishing in 18th place with a time of 11:55.20.
The men's side finished as a team with a total time of 1:23:42.00 and averaged 16:44.40 per runner.
Wofford will return to actoin when they travel to USC Upstate on Friday, Sep. 6th at the Eye Opener.
Western Carolina men finish fourth, women fifth in season opener
CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Western Carolina’s men’s and women’s cross country teams finished fourth and fifth respectively in their opening meet of the 2013 season, the Western Carolina Invitational, Friday night host on WCU’s campus.
The men, led by junior Travis Alfaro with a time of 15:37.75 in 15th place, finished fourth out of the 11-team field with 104 runners. Trailing closely behind Alfaro was sophomore Michael Cornwell with a time of 15:46.72 good enough for 18th place. Freshman J.C. Cornett completed the 5k course in 15:58.89 in 23rd place, while fellow freshman Clay Howarth crossed the finish line in 31st place after a time of 16:15.72. Sophomore Jamie Bigby was the final Catamount runner whose score counted. He finished in 50th with a time of 16:37.17. Sophomores Cooper Wurst and Perry Cabean finished with times of 16:41.49 and 17:02.94 respectively. Freshman Tommy Connell ran a 17:17.01, and senior Aaron Harris finished with a time of 18:36.81 to round out the WCU runners.
On the women’s side, the Catamounts fifth place finish was led by top runner, junior Aleshia Reese with a time of 11:48.00 good enough for 15th over the two-mile course. Twelve teams and a total of 104 runners were in the women’s race. Junior Michelle Provost capped off the race in 23rd with a time of 11:59.53, and Junior Jocelyn King finished in 31st after a time of 12:12.02. Seniors Kaylan Lance and Hayley Tomlinson finished back-to-back in 44th and 45th place after times of 12:23.40 and 12:24.51. Lance and Tomlinson were the final WCU runners to have their scores count. Sophomore Kaitlyn Shelter ran a 12:36.45, while fellow sophomore MacKenzie Jensen completed the course in 12:43.30. Freshmen Katarina Ruehl and Rachel Johnson finished with times of 12:51.12 and 12:58.72 respectively. Junior Lena Elliott and Freshman Julia Metscher were the final Catamounts with times of 13:24.26 and 13:39.56.
Western Carolina will compete at the Winthrop Adidas Invitational for its next meet on Saturday, September 21 starting at 9 a.m.