Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
IC4A's
Johnston's Fifth-Place Showing Leads Bucknell Men's Cross Country to IC4A Championship
11/17/2001 7:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Nov. 17, 2001
BRONX, N.Y. - Despite the absence of its top runner, Greg Costello, the Bucknell University men's cross country team closed out its 2001 season in style this afternoon, beating out 18 other schools to win the IC4A Championship at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx. The women's team, also without the services of one their top harriers in Theresa Dennis, saw its season come to a successful finish as well, as the Bison tied for third among 14 schools in the ECAC Championship race.
Costello and Dennis qualified for the NCAA Championship at last weekend's NCAA Mid-East Regional meet. Because the NCAA's are contested this Monday, Costello and Dennis were unable to compete in the IC4A/ECAC's.
The men's team finished with a 91-point total to edge out second-place finisher Yale by 14 points. Junior Bryan Johnson led the men's team with a fifth-place performance in the 182-man field. Johnston finished the five-mile race in 25:14.20, just 10 seconds behind meet winner Matt Spring of Manhattan.
Bucknell's second finisher was senior P.J. Ward, who completed the course in 25:40.50. Coming across the line just three seconds behind Ward was sophomore Wes Reinhardt, who placed 21st in 25:43.90.
Rounding out Bucknell's scoring were junior Lou Palma and senior Evan Honeyfield, who each turned in season-best times. Palma placed 28th in 25:51.50, while Honeyfield came in 34th in 25:57.80.
"I am so proud of how our men competed and how they ended their season," remarked head coach Kevin Donner. "It is fitting that the seniors ended their cross country careers with a major meet win. The meet also served as a great steppingstone for our younger runners."
In the women's ECAC race, the Bison tied Duke for third place with 113 points while finishing behind Georgetown (74) and James Madison (51). Senior Chris Crowe was the meet runner-up, placing second among 106 competitors. She covered the 5,000 meter course in 18:02.80, and finished the race as Bucknell's top runner for the first time in her career.
Other Bison who cracked the top-25 were seniors Becki Marshall and Kristin Ferrell. Marshall came in seventh in 18:18.00, while Ferrell placed 21st in 18:40.40.
Senior Kelly McConnell (29th, 18:51.40) and junior Nicki Piper (63rd, 19:31.30) completed Bucknell's team scoring.
"To finish third in the ECAC without Theresa is a great accomplishment," said Donner. "I am very proud of our four seniors who ran with a lot of heart today and I am very excited on how our underclassmen competed."
Bucknell Individual Finishers (Men): 5. Bryan Johnston, 25:14.20, 16. P.J. Ward, 25:40.50, 21. Wes Reinhardt, 25:43.90, 28. Lou Palma, 25:51.50, 34. Evan Honeyfield, 25:57.80, 64. Travis Etters, 26:18.30, 80. Kevin Weatherill, 26:26.30, 86. Doug Creveling, 26:31.00, 103. Eric Furst, 26:49.90, 107. Stephen Schaefer, 26:54.90, 110. Mike Euell, 27:00.80, 138. Matias Palavecino, 27:35.20. Women: 2. Chris Crowe, 18:02.80, 7. Becki Marshall, 18:18.00, 21. Kristin Ferrell, 18:40.40, 29. Kelly McConnell, 18:51.40, 63. Nicki Piper, 19:31.30, 72. Katie Bishop, 19:50.80, 82. Kelly Raffety, 20:02.50.
Top 10 Overall Finishers (Men): 1. Matt Spring, Manhattan, 25:04.60, 2. Ben Koch, St. Joseph's, 25:06.50, 3. Steve Walsh, Penn State, 25:07.70, 4. West Garrett, William & Mary, 25:09.60, 5. Bryan Johnston, Bucknell, 25:14.20, 6. Nickie Peters, Coppin State, 25:20.70, 7. Jose Zayas, St. Joseph's, 25:21.60, 8. Christopher Andrew, Yale, 25:22.80, 9. Don Dombroski, Cornell, 25:23.10, 10. Ryan Sheehan, St. Francis (Pa.), 25:31.20. Women: 1. Cynthia Dunham, James Madison, 17:50.70, 2. Chris Crowe, Bucknell, 18:02.80, 3. Paige Miller, Duke, 18:06.20, 4. Aimee Alexander, Delaware, 18:09.40, 5. Paris Edwards, Duke, 18:12.70, 6. Jennifer Lapetoda, James Madison, 18:13.70, 7. Becki Marshall, Bucknell, 18:18.00, 8. Treniere Clement, Georgetown, 18:19.00, 9. Suzanne Hutchins, James Madison, 18:23.40, 10. Jessica Walton, Albany, 18:25.10.
Team Results (Men): 1. Bucknell, 91, 2. Yale, 105, 3. William & Mary, 111, 4. Cornell, 118, 5. Penn State,147, 6. St. Joseph's, 181, 7. James Madison, 194, 8. Manhattan, 210, 9. St. Francis (Pa.), 272, 10. Albany, 281, 11. Marist, 291, 12. Delaware, 362, 13. La Salle, 377, 14. Georgetown, 387, T15. St. John's, 393, T15. Duquesne, 393, 17. Duke, 396, 18. Villanova, 399, 19. Holy Cross, 545. Women: 1. James Madison, 51, 2. Georgetown, 74, T3. Bucknell, 113, T3. Duke, 113, 5. Princeton, 150, 6. Cornell, 157, 7. St. Joseph's, 196, 8. Colgate, 229, 9. St. Francis (Pa.), 230, 10. Delaware, 241, 11. Marist, 249, 12. Yale, 282, 13. Villanova, 308, 14. George Mason, 408.
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