Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Paul Short Memorial Invitational
Bucknell Cross Country Has Strong Showing, Completes Upsets at Paul Short Run
10/2/2009 8:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
Oct. 2, 2009
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Bucknell cross country had a strong showing at the Paul Short Memorial Run hosted by Lehigh in Bethlehem, Pa., on Friday morning. The Bison men finished 19th out of 42 teams, while the women's squad was 13th of 40. For the third straight meet, Sarah Moniz (Topsfield, Mass./Masconomet Regional) and Andrew Huebner (Hampton Falls, N.H./The Governor's Academy) were the first Bison to cross the finish line.
Both teams pulled off some upsets in the Mid-Atlantic Region polls. The men, ranked 12th in the last standings, bettered Duquesne (No. 7) and Lehigh (No. 10) in the 8-kilometer Gold race. As a team, they finished as the Patriot League's third representative, trailing Navy, who took an impressive fourth place, and Army at 15th.
"It was a very fast day for the entire field. Our men had a 25:03 five-man average which is the fastest since I have been here on this course," said head coach Kevin Donner. "Although 19th does not sound all that great, we did beat a number of teams that have been beating us the past couple of years and we were very close to finishing in the top 15 in this quality field."
Huebner was 42nd overall in 24:29. The senior co-captain thrived under the pressure of the big meet, bettering his 8K time from two weeks ago by nearly 40 seconds. Just like Bucknell's previous races this fall, Huebner was joined in the team's top three by classmates Conor McNamara (Baldwin, N.Y./Chaminade) and Kevin McGoldrick (West Chester, Pa./Henderson). McNamara was 106th overall (25:00), while McGoldrick came in 120th (25:05). Dave Brown (Westborough, Mass./Westborough) and Ian Shore (South Orange, N.J./Seton Hall Prep) rounded out the scoring for Bucknell.
"Huebner is really running well. He was out pretty slow over the first mile and then moved up throughout the race," Donner said of his senior. "McNamara and McGoldrick are much improved over last year, and Brown ran extremely well considering his training has been limited due to an injury. I continue to be very pleased with Shore who has also improved quite a bit."
In the men's JV/Open Race, Baron Willeford (New Orleans, La./Columbia Prep (N.Y.)) finished 26th for the Bison's top spot. The senior completed the 8K course in a time of 25:42.
Like the men, the women's team surprised some its fellow Mid-Atlantic squads, upsetting No. 7 La Salle and No. 10 Duquesne in the team standings. The only Patriot League unit to get the better of the Bison was Navy, who finished 12th, a mere 15 points ahead of Bucknell.
Moniz and Alysha Hooper (Meaford, Ontario/St. Mary's) were again the top two finishers for the Orange and Blue, and Stephanie Fulmer (Pottstown, Pa./St. Pius X) completed the trio that finished within just seconds of each other. Moniz finished the 6K women's course in 21:37, good for 59th place overall. Hooper completed her race by placing 65th in a time of 21:40, while Fulmer was 66th in 21:41 in her first race of the season. Also scoring for the Bison were Alexa Griffiths (Tamaqua, Pa./Tamaqua) and Kara Weichler (Pittsburgh, Pa./Plum).
"It was a mental boost to have Fulmer back," said Donner of his women's squad. "Our top three ran great. Moniz and Hooper are much improved over last year. Fulmer is still in early season form as it was her first race. I look for her to improve quite a bit over the next four to six weeks. We do need to close the gap between our top 3 and the rest of our scoring positions. I believe we have the people who are capable and that will make us a very strong team."
Lauren Wiemken (Howell, N.J./Howell) placed 21st in the JV/Open Race earlier in the day. The junior finished the 6K course in 23:00.
Indiana took the men's team title, while North Carolina State sophomore Ryan Hill won the Gold race in 23:40. Leading the way on the women's side was West Virginia, ranked fourth nationally. Sophomore Nelly Spence from Shippensburg was the individual champion, breaking the meet record by one second with a time of 19:58.
Both teams will be back in action on Friday, Oct. 16 when they compete at the Penn State National Invitational at University Park, Pa. The meet will be the last before the postseason begins with the Patriot League Championships slated for Saturday, Oct. 31.
TOP BISON MEN FINISHERS - GOLD RACE
42. Andrew Huebner - 24:29
106. Conor McNamara - 25:00
120. Kevin McGoldrick - 25:05
147. Dave Brown - 25:16
181. Ian Shore - 25:26
TOP BISON MEN FINISHERS - JV/OPEN RACE
26. Baron Willeford - 25:42
48. Mike Ryan - 26:00
65. Robert Yamnicky - 26:09
74. Matt Brooker - 26:12
77. Timothy Ryan - 26:14
TOP BISON WOMEN FINISHERS - GOLD RACE
59. Sarah Moniz - 21:37
65. Alysha Hooper - 21:40
66. Stephanie Fulmer - 21:41
141. Alexa Griffiths - 22:15
150. Kara Weichler - 22:20
TOP BISON WOMEN FINISHERS - JV/OPEN RACE
21. Lauren Wiemken - 23:00
27. Sara Lederman - 23:09
42. Erin Heidecker - 23:27
70. Emily Liggett - 23:49
74. Caroline Tolli - 23:54
