Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Cross Country to Duel with Duquesne in Pittsburgh
9/16/2011 8:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Sept. 16, 2011
LEWISBURG, Pa. –Bucknell cross country will race in a rare dual meet, going head-to-head with Duquesne Saturday at Schenley Park in Pittsburgh, Pa. The Bison hope revenge will be the order of the day, as they lost to the Dukes in their last dual two years ago. Races begin at 9:30 a.m. with the men running eight kilometers and the women competing at 5K.
The Bison had a strong start to their season two weeks ago, dominating at the un-scored Bucknell Open. Dave Brown (Westborough, Mass./Westborough) earned his first career win. He was followed immediately by fellow veterans Dan Dillon (Edinboro, Pa./General McLane) and D.J. Krystek (Pitcairn, Pa./Gateway Senior), but freshmen made up Bucknell's next five finishers. The women's squad was also led by its veterans. Seniors Alysha Hooper (Meaford, Ontario/St. Mary's) and Emily Liggett (Grosse Pointe, Mich./Lawrenceville School (N.J.)) finished neck-and-neck for second and third, respectively, and sophomore Kady Weisner (St. Mary's, Pa./Elk County Catholic) was the only Bison in their top seven who wasn't an upperclassman.
Brown will undoubtedly look to remain at the top of the standings. The senior was 22nd overall at last year's tri-meet with Duquesne and Pittsburgh, and ninth in the 2009 dual with Duquesne. The Bucknell men's squad could hardly look more different than it did when the Bison and the Dukes met in 2009. Brown finished fourth on the team and higher than any other returning runner in that race. Only three Bison – Brown, Robert Yamnicky (Shelton, Conn./Shelton) and Ryne Carney (Dimock, Pa./Elk Lake) – finished among the squad's top 20 and are back in 2011.
Unlike their male counterparts, the women's team returns much of the same squad from their 2009 dual. Hooper was third overall and second among Bison only to Sarah Moniz. Kelly Grosskurth (Huntington Station, N.Y./Half Hallow Hills East) and Kara Weichler (Pittsburgh, Pa./Plum) also earned top-10 finishes, while Leah Goeke (Garnet Valley, Pa./Garnet Valley) was 12th overall.
When the Bison women were in Pittsburgh for the 2010 tri-meet with the Dukes and Panthers, Stephanie Fulmer (Pottstown, Pa./St. Pius X) earned the win in 18:00 at 5K. Moniz, Hooper and Grosskurth were also in the top five as Bucknell won convincingly with 18 points. Duquesne was second with 40 points, and Pitt totaled 84.
Both Duquesne units rank among the top 15 in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Mid-Atlantic Region Poll. The men, which finished just 12 points out of first place at last year's Atlantic 10 Championships, were eighth. The women were 11th in the poll, two spots behind the No. 9 Bison.
After returning from Pittsburgh, Bucknell will take its next major step toward preparing for the Patriot League Championships. The Bison will run at Lehigh's Paul Short Memorial Invitational on Sept. 30 at Bethlehem, Pa., on the same course as the 2011 league championship race next month.
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