Upcoming Schedule
Friday, September 10
Powerade Invitational (Chattanooga, Tenn.)
Austin Peay
Tennessee State (women)
EIU Panther Open (Charleston, Ill.)
Eastern Illinois
SIU Edwardsville
Georgia State Invitational (Atlanta, Ga.)
Jacksonville State
OVC Runners of the Week
MALE RUNNER OF THE WEEK
Enock Langat • Austin Peay
Junior • Litein, Kenya
Langat finished 14th overall at the Belmont/Vanderbilt Cross Country Opener held at Percy-Warner Park in Nashville on Friday. The junior competed in a field of 89 runners that included 10 teams, including several regionally ranked Division I squads (Tennessee, Lipscomb) as well as Middle Tennessee and fellow OVC school UT Martin. Langat covered the 5K course in 16:08.37.
Others Nominated: Soufiane Bouchikhi, Eastern Kentucky; Matt Brick, Jacksonville State; Josh Wakeman, Morehead State; Chris Loseman, Southeast Missouri; Colin Johnson, UT Martin.
FEMALE RUNNER OF THE WEEK
Ericka Stam • Jacksonville State
Sophomore • Keller, Texas
Stam took third place out of 53 runners at the Jacksonville State/Strut's Season Opener at the Oxford Lake and Recreation Center. The sophomore covered the course in 14:19 and helped Jacksonville State to a third place finish overall.
Others Nominated: Jackline Barkechir, Eastern Kentucky; Katelyn Jones, Murray State; Ellie Luze, UT Martin.
Team Notes
Preseason Predictions: Prior to the beginning of the season, OVC cross country coaches made their predictions for the 2010 season. On the men's side, Eastern Kentucky (81 points, 9 first-place votes) was followed by Eastern Illinois (1 first-place vote) and Southeast Missouri State (68 points apiece), Jacksonville State (55), Morehead State (50), Tennessee Tech (34), UT Martin (33), Austin Peay (28), Murray State (21) and Tennessee State (12). On the women's side, Eastern Kentucky was picked first (81 points, 9 first-place votes) and was followed by Eastern Illinois (70 points, 1 first-place vote), Murray State (63), Southeast Missouri (59), Jacksonville State (47), Morehead State (39), Tennessee Tech (29), Austin Peay (28), UT Martin (24) and Tennessee State (10).
Regional Rankings: In the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) regional rankings the Eastern Kentucky women are ranked ninth in the Southeast Region. On the men's side Eastern Kentucky was 15th in the Southeast Region and Jacksonville State was 13th in the South Region. The USTFCCCA ranks 15 teams in nine different regions each week during the season.
Austin Peay: Austin Peay opened the 2010 season at the Belmont-Vanderbilt Opener at Percy-Warner Park in Nashville. The men's team was fifth overall as junior Enock Langat placed 14th in the competitive field of 89 runners. His time of 16:08.37 in the 5K race earned him OVC Runner of the Week honors. On the women's side Miranda Weed paced the Lady Govs with a 58th place finish (15:53.76) in the 4K race. APSU returns to action on Friday at the Powerade Invitational in Chattanooga.
Eastern Illinois: Eastern Illinois did not compete last week. The Panthers are back in action on Sept. 10 when they host the EIU Panther Open in Charleston.
Eastern Kentucky: Eastern Kentucky kicked off the season by hosting Marshall for a dual meet at the Wood Chip Trail on Saturday. The men and women's squad topped the Thundering Herd. Newcomer Soufiane Bouchikhi was first overall with a 3-mile time of 13:53. The women's runners finished 1-5 overall with sophomore Jackline Barkechir winning with a time of 11:27.8. EKU will be back in action in two weeks in Bowling Green when they compete in the WKU Ole Timers Classic.
Jacksonville State: Jacksonville State opened the 2010 season by hosting the Strut's Season Opener at the Oxford Lake & Recreation Center. The Gamecocks women's team was third out of six teams as Ericka Stam placed third with a time of 14:19. That time earned her OVC Runner of the Week honors. The men's team only had four runners so they did not have a team score. They were paced by Matt Brick, running in his first race at JSU. Brick finished sixth overall with a time of 15:29. JSU returns to the course on Friday at the Georgia State Invitational in Atlanta.
Morehead State: Morehead State traveled to the Dayton Flyer 5K in Kettering, Ohio on Saturday. The men and women's teams each finished fifth out of five University division teams at the event. The field did contain numerous College division squads as the men's race had 139 runners and the women's field contained 166 competitors. Josh Wakeman was 23rd on the men's side, finishing in a time of 15:50. Liz Braunwart was 59th overall on the women's side, finishing in a time of 20:11. MSU is back on the course at the WKU Old Timers Classic on Sept. 18.
Murray State: Murray State began the 2010 season at the SIU Early Bird in Carbondale, Ill. on Friday. The Racers had a strong performance from Katelyn Jones, who was second in a field of 21 runners, finishing the 4K with a time of 15:09.6. She was one of four MSU runners in the Top 10 overall as the team placed second overall. On the men's side Derek Perry was 13th overall (21:04.6). Murray State is back on the course on Sept. 18 at the Commodore Classic in Nashville.
Southeast Missouri: Southeast Missouri ran at the Washington University of St. Louis Early Bird on Saturday. The Redhawk men's team was second out of 18 total teams, as Chris Loseman took sixth place with a 6K time of 19:25.2. The women's team was also second (out of 16 teams) as Monica Noble finished 18th (16:08.5). The Redhawks are back on the course in two weeks at the Commodore Classic in Nashville.
SIU Edwardsville: SIU Edwardsville traveled to Champaign to compete in the Illini Challenge last Friday. The Cougars women's team was third out of five teams, as Aftan Noon was 10th overall, finishing in a time of 15:41. The men were fourth overall, as Aaron Werths ran the 6K course in 27:26.40. SIUE will travel to Charleston, Ill. next week to compete in the EIU Panther Open.
Tennessee State: Tennessee State has not competed yet this season. The Tiger Belles will open on Friday at the UTC Powerade Invitational in Chattanooga. The men's squad will open a week later at the Vanderbilt Commodore Classic.
Tennessee Tech: Tennessee Tech competed in a big field of teams at the Sewanee Invitational. Both the men's and women's squads were fourth overall. The men's team got a ninth place finish out of freshman Matthew Bishop, who ran the 6K course in 27:26.40. Freshman Peri Winborne led the Golden Eagle women's team, finishing the 6K course in 23:54.73. TTU is back in action at the WKU Old Timers Classic in two weeks.
UT Martin: UT Martin was one of two OVC schools to run at the Belmont-Vanderbilt Season Opener at Percy-Warner Park in Nashville this past weekend. The Skyhawks' Colin Johnson was 28th out of 89 runners in the men's race, as he finished with a time of 16:27.52. The race was the collegiate debut for Johnson. On the women's side Ellie Luze was 78th out of 120 runners with a time of 16:21.16. UTM is off this week but back in action on Sept. 18 at the WKU Old Timers Classic in Bowling Green.