Nov. 13, 2010
Stats
PEORIA, Ill. -
The Illinois State men's and women's cross country teams competed in the NCAA Midwest Regional Cross Country Championships on the Newman Golf Course Saturday in Peoria, Ill. The men finished the 10K race with 461 points in 16th place, while the women's team finished in 13th place with 408 points.
The course ran well, but the strong winds played a factor in Saturday's meet.
Senior Matt Mroczynski was the first Redbird runner to cross the finish line for the men's team. Mroczynski finished the course in 31:08.35, which put him in 42nd place. Sophomore Blake Brooks finished the race in 104th place with a time of 32:31.86, while senior Jon Roberts crossed the finish line in 32:35.72 for 107th place.
"Matt has had a consistent season and it has been his most consistent season during his four years here," said head cross country coach Jeff Bovee. "Matt had a solid race, and he was shooting for All-Regional Team, but he didn't quite make it. The Midwest Regional is one of the toughest in the country."
Freshman Erik Stanton covered the 10K course in 32:49.19, while sophomore Mat Smoody finished the race in 32:49.74 to round out the top-five runners for the Redbirds. Junior John Navarro completed the meet in 32:59.12, while junior Jim Link ran the course in 33:27.62.
"Erik had his best cross country race of his college career and that was the first 10K race he has ever run," said Bovee. "Smoody ran a good race, and I was pleased with John's performance as well. I thought the men's team fought well, and I look forward to watching them progress through the track and field season."
On the women's side, senior Jess Husted was the first women's runner to cross the finish line in a time of 21:43.05 finishing the race in 69th place. Junior Aisha Praught (21:50.32) and sophomore Samantha Bluske (21:51.03) crossed the finish line in 82nd and 83rd place, respectively. Senior Olivia Myers ran a 21:51.90 and finished the race in 86th place.
"The women performed really well," said Bovee. "We had our best top-five average time during my time here. Our No. 1 through No. 5 runners were only 25 seconds apart, which is our best one to five gap this season. For our women to climb into the top-10, we need our one through three runners to lengthen that gap. The women have made a lot of progress and it is really exciting to see them continue to get better."
Freshman Kristen Zillmer finished in 100th place after completing the 6K course in 22:08.52. Senior Kirsten Lang (123rd) and Brea Tinney (133rd) completed their race in 22:35.72 and 22:50.67, respectively.
The Redbird men's and women's cross country teams entered Saturday's contest both ranked No. 12 in the NCAA Division I Midwest Regional Rankings, as voted on by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
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