Pre-Nationals at Louisville
Women's Cross Country Places Second at Pre-Nationals
10/17/2015 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
LOUISVILLE, KY - University at Buffalo, The State University of New York men's and women's cross country team competed at pre-nationals on the University of Louisville's campus. The women's team placed second with a score of 183, while the men finished with a score of 1140.
Chardae Henry led the way for the Bulls with a time of 21:25.2 She finished in 22nd place and miss a top-20 finish by less than four seconds. This is the second meet in a row that Henry finished with a time of 21:25 on in the 6 k race. Two weeks ago she finished in 38th at the Paul Short Invitational with the same time. Rachel Barich completed the course in a time of 21:30.8 and collected 31 points towards the overall team score. Amy Shaw (21:32.5), Corinne Birchard (21:43.5), and Meagan Hopkins (21:52.3) finished in 32nd, 43rd, and 55th place, respectively.
Even though their times did not contribute to the overall team score, Melinda Wheeler and Morgan Mahoney ran strong indivdually with times of 59th and 132nd, respectively. Buffalo finished only seven points behind first-place Washington St. and twenty points above third-place Arizona. Overall, the Bulls beat quality programs that are regionally and nationall ranked.
While the men's team finished in 42nd place overall, they also faced top cross country programs from around the country in the seeded race. Cameron Bruce finished in 162nd place with a time of 24:42.2, which is a season-best time and five seconds faster than his time of 24:47 at the Lehigh Paul Short Invitational. Barret Kemp finished in 202nd place with a time of 24:57.4. The team's performance at Louisville on Saturday bodes well for the team moving forward as they prepare for MAC Championships in two weeks and NCAA Regionals in November.
In the men's open race Adam Hunt placed 59th place with a time of 25:48.4, which is his second-best 8 k run this season and only eight seconds lower than his time at the Lehigh Paul Short Invitational. Tyler Scheving ran to a 68th finish with a time of 25:57.6, while Daniel Muldoon finished with a time of 29:29.1.
Brittany Fuller ran 22:35.3 to finish in 39th place of the women's open race. Charlotte Molloy's time of 22:44.4 was fast enough for 45th place, while Bailey Kemp ran in a time of 23:55.9.
Members of both the men's and women's cross country teams also competed at the Canisius Alumni Classic. Lauren Reyda finished 18th with a time 18:58.7 in the 5 k. On the men's side Thomas Meehan had the team's top time of 26:23.5 in the 8 k event.
The Bulls will have a week off from competitition before their next meet on October 31 when they head to Akron for the 2015 MAC Championships.
