NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State women have added another race to their schedule and are set to compete at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational on Friday, Oct. 4. The 'Birds will compete in the Gold Division 5K at Burke Golf Course with a projected start time of 2:15 p.m. CT.
The 'Birds are one of 26 teams racing in the Gold Division, including opponents from the SEC, the Big 12 Conference and the Mountain West Conference, among others. Also representing the Valley in the Gold Division are Indiana State and Valparaiso.
The Redbird women finished fifth at last week's Gans Creek Classic in Columbia, Missouri, beating Drake and Southern Illinois, the only other Missouri Valley Conference opponents competing at Mizzou.
Sophomore Rachel Hickey led ISU with a 17th place finish, the top finish among Valley teams, in the 5K with a time of 22:37.8 to earn her first cross country MVC Runner of the Week honor.
Three other Redbirds posted top-50 finishes in the extremely hot weather conditions in Columbia, including redshirt-junior Grace Beattie and seniors Annie Moore and Kennidi Knoblock.
Beattie and Moore crossed the finish line 39th and 40th overall, clocking in at 23:28.5 and 23:29.5, respectively. Knoblock wasn't far behind, finishing fourth on the team and 47th overall with a time of 23:52.1 to round out the Redbirds that placed in the top-50.
At last year's Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational, the ISU women finished fifth in the 5K Gold Division where Hickey (18:20.55) and Moore (18:26.18) both posted personal-best performances in the 5K. Knoblock completed Illinois State's scoring at last year's race, finishing 45th overall in 18:39.53.
The Redbird men will not race in South Bend this Friday. Their next race is Friday, Oct. 18 at the Bradley Classic in Peoria, Illinois.
