Team Notes
Austin Peay: Austin Peay’s men and women competed in NCAA South Regional Championships on Saturday, their final meet of the season. The men’s and women’s teams were both coming off seventh place finishes at the Conference Championships two weekends ago. Tim Hall and Ryne Sexton paced the Governors at both the Conference and Regional Championships, as they have all year. Bertha Castillo had solid finishes for the women at both the OVC and Regional Championship. The All-Conference performer finished fourth at the OVC Championship and 50th, in a field of over 150, at the Regional Championships.
Eastern Illinois: The EIU men’s team had a strong fourth place finish at the Conference Championships, despite the absence of their top runner Brad Butler. The women placed fifth, led by junior Erin O’Grady. Eastern Illinois ran in the Midwest Regional, in Stillwater, Okla., over the weekend. Derek Ericson paced the Panthers for the second straight meet finishing 85th in a field of over 150. Erin O’Grady led the way for the women, finishing the 6K race in 23:27.
Eastern Kentucky: Eastern Kentucky won the OVC title in both the men’s and women’s competition for the third consecutive year. The men’s team finished with a dominant performance, placing runners in five of the first six spots and nearing attaining the lowest team score possible. The women, led by a fifth place finish by Kat Pagano, was the most consistent team in the championship. The Colonels competed in the NCAA Southeast Regional in Clemons, N.C. The men finished their season with a solid sixth place run, led by 17th place finisher Joesph Mania, who nearly completed the 10k race in less than 31 minutes. Evans Kiptoo, Stanley Mugo and Christopher Rengifo all finished in the top 50 in a field of over 200. The women’s team finished 21st of 33 in the Regional Championship. The EKU women managed to place three runners in the top 90 in field of over 230. Kat Pagano led the way again with a 6k time of 22:27.
Jacksonville State: Jacksonville State’s men, on the heals of a fifth place finish at the Conference championship, competed in the NCAA South Regional Championship, along with three other OVC schools. George Kiplagat, who notched a top 10 finish at the OVC Championship, led the Gamecocks with a 63rd place finish in a field of over 145. The women’s team did not compete in the NCAA Regional.
Morehead State: Morehead State, led by Ron Duncan, posted a third place finish at the OVC Championship on November 1st. The All-Conference performer also paced the Eagles at the NCAA Southeast Regional, hosted by Wake Forest. Duncan’s 47th place finish was tops on a team that saw three runners finish in the top half of a field of over 200. The women’s team also competed in the Southeast Regional. Alexis King recorded the best time for the Eagles, finishing the 6K race in less than 25 minutes.
Murray State: The women’s team, fresh off a second place finish at the OVC Championship, competed in the Southeast Regional in Clemons, N.C. The Racers were led by Katelyn Jones, who continued her stellar year with a 60th place finish in a field of over 230. Jones also tallied a third place finish in the Conference Championship on November 1. The men’s team did not compete in the Regionals.
Southeast Missouri: The Southeast Missouri men, led by a fourth-place finish by Brandon Karcher, and women finished second and third respectively in the OVC Championships on November 1. The men put up a solid performance in the NCAA Midwest Regional in Stillwater, Okla., finishing 12th in a field of 23. They were led by Karcher, who put up a quality performance finishing 46th. On the women’s side, Juli Koenegstien and Caitlin Napoleoni both finished the 6K regional race in less than 24 minutes.
SIU Edwardsville: SIU Edwardsville concluded its first season at Division I by running in the Evansville Invitational. The team, who is reclassifying to Division I, did not compete at the OVC Championships. In their final race of the season, the men’s squad was led by Kyle Cameron who was 16th overall (25:10.16); the team was 10th of out 22 total teams who competed at the event. On the women’s side, Kayla Brown was fifth in a time of 17:50.89; that allowed the women’s team to finish 11th overall.
Tennessee State: The Tennessee State cross country teams finished up the 2008 season on November 1 at the OVC Championships. The Tigers were led by Anes Koko, who has paced the Tigers in every race of the season. On the women’s side Rahab Kagaruki was the Tiger front-runner, finishing the 5k race in less than 22 minutes.
Tennessee Tech: Tennessee Tech was one of four OVC schools to have participants in the NCAA South Regional in Knoxville. OVC Runner of the Year Stephanie Place posted the best regional time by an OVC runner this year finishing with a 6k time of 21:35, placing her 19th overall in the region. On the men’s side, Sam Taylor led the way for the Golden Eagles finishing the 10k race in just under 35 minutes.
UT Martin: The Skyhawks wrapped up their team season at the OVC Championship on November 1, however the men’s team sent Lucas Massy and Shannon Wall to Knoxville to compete in the NCAA South Regional. Massey finished the season strong with a 58th place finish in a field of 147. Massey also posted a solid 17th place finish at the OVC championship.