Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Pre-NCAA's (A Team)
Costello, Marshall Front Cross Country Teams at Pre-NCAA's
10/13/2001 8:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
Oct. 13, 2001
GREENVILLE, S.C. - The Bucknell University cross country teams performed well against some of the best teams in the nation this afternoon at the Pre-NCAA Meet, hosted by Furman University. The men's team totaled 520 point and placed 20th out of 35 teams, while the women's team came in 17th among 37 schools with a team score of 484.
One of the largest cross country meets in the nation, the meet was broken up into six different races. The event attracted 101 men's teams, while 99 teams competed on the women's side.
Bucknell's top seven men's runners ran in the Pre-NCAA "Black" race, one of two seeded men's races, which was won by No. 2 Stanford University. Junior Greg Costello crossed the finish line first for the Bison, placing 35th in the 223-man field in a time of 25:24. Junior P.J. Ward also turned in an impressive performance, covering the five-mile course in 26:28 to take 110th in 26:28. Rounding out the Bison's team scoring were graduate student Kevin Weatherill (114th, 26:29), junior Lou Palma (122nd, 26:34) and sophomore Wes Reinhardt (139th, 26:46). Junior Bryan Johnston (160th, 27:02) and senior Travis Etters (173rd, 27:09) also competed for the Bison.
"Greg ran a superb race today," praised head coach Kevin Donner. "His performance should give him confidence that he can make the NCAA Championships.
"As a team we ran a solid race, but we need our second through seventh runners to close the gap a little behind Greg for us to be able to compete at a national level," said Donner.
The women's varsity squad competed in the Pre-NCAA "Silver" race, which was also one of two seeded women's events. That race was also won by the second-ranked Stanford women, who came out on top with a 72-point mark. Senior Becki Marshall led the way for Bison, scaling the 6,000 meter course in 22:19, good for 61st place among 246 competitors. Finishing just four seconds behind Marshall was junior Theresa Dennis, who took 64th in 22:23. Also figuring into Bucknell's team scoring were seniors Christina Crowe (90th, 22:47), Kelly McConnell (127th, 23:16) and Kristin Ferrell (142nd, 23:27). Sophomore Stephanie Keller (229th, 25:24) and freshman Katie Bishop (230th, 25:28) raced but did not score for the Bison.
"Our women ran a great race, and did what we needed to do to prepare for the regional meet," said Donner. "We beat a couple of big-name schools, but we do need to work on our depth at the six and seven spots."
The Bison also had five men and two women compete in the unseeded Furman Invitational, and the men's contingent placed 14th with a 338-point effort. Freshman Travis Rivers placed 55th out of 295 harriers to lead the Bison in that race, while junior Eric Furst took 86th in 27:08. Sophomore Nick Mousetis (104th, 27:25), sophomore Stephen Schaefer (118th, 27:36) and senior Evan Honeyfield (200th, 28:50) filled out the Bison's team scoring.
Competing in the Furman Invitational for the women's team were juniors Nicki Piper, who placed 106th out of 263 competitors in 24:47, and Michelle Baylor, who took 141st in 25:17.
The Bison will take a week off to prepare for the Patriot League Championships on Oct. 27 at Colgate University.
Bucknell Individual Finishers (Pre-NCAA Races), Men: 35. Greg Costello, 25:24, 110. P.J. Ward, 26:28, 114. Kevin Weatherill, 26:29, 122. Lou Palma, 26:34, 139. Wes Reinhardt, 26:46, 160. Bryan Johnston, 27:02, 173. Travis Etters, 27:09. Women: 61. Becki Marshall, 22:19, 64. Theresa Dennis, 22:23, 90. Chris Crowe, 22:47, 127. Kelly McConnell, 23:16, 142. Kristin Ferrell, 23:27, 229. Stephanie Keller, 25:24, 230. Katie Bishop, 25:28.
Bucknell Individual Finishers (Furman Invitational Races), Men: 55. Travis Rivers, 26:41, 86. Eric Furst, 27:08, 104. Nick Mousetis, 27:25, 118. Stephen Schaeffer, 27:36, 200. Evan Honeyfield, 28:50. Women: 106. Nicki Piper, 24:47, 141. Michelle Baylor, 25:17.
Top Team Finishers--Men's Pre-NCAA "Black" Race: 1. Stanford, 56, 2. North Carolina State, 94, 3. Northern Arizona, 136, 20. Bucknell, 520. Women's Pre-NCAA "Silver" Race: 1. Stanford, 72, 2. Brigham Young, 74, 3. North Carolina State, 142, 17. Bucknell, 484.
