PROVO -- Facing some of the top running programs in the country, the BYU men’s and women’s cross country teams fared well in competitions in Arkansas and Indiana Saturday morning.
The No. 6 men’s team came in third place overall out of 35 schools at the Pre-Nationals Invitational in Terre Haute, Ind., with 163 points behind only No. 1 Stanford (47) and No. 4 Colorado (130). Sophomore Miles Batty led the way for the Cougars as he finished 12th overall in a field of 237 runners with an 8K time of 24:02 to lead the team over No. 8 Portland, No. 12 Iona and No. 19 Arizona State, among others.
The race took place at the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course, the same location where the NCAA Championships will take place Nov. 23.
“It was a very good race for us,” said BYU men’s cross country head coach Ed Eyestone. “We performed well and we showed good depth. I think we’ve established the depth chart for the conference race in a few weeks and solidified who our lead runners are. I’m happy with the race.”
Sophomore Tommy Gruenewald (19th) arrived second for the Cougars six seconds behind Batty followed by Rich Nelson (29), Alden Bahr (44) and Ryan Merriman (59). Nate Ogden and Brandon Hebbert helped to solidify the third-place finish following the top five team runners.
Several Cougars ran in the open race to determine the final runners of the traveling team that will compete Oct. 31 at the Mountain West Conference Championships at Cascade Golf Course in Orem, Utah. Travis Fuller came in third place in the 8K race followed by Jonathan Nelson, Jon Kotter, Dylan Shawhan and Reagan Frey. Teams will be allowed nine runners at the MWC Championships.
The No. 22 women’s team also competed well as they faced upper-tier competition at the Chile Pepper Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark., and finished in second place with 77 points only behind No. 20 Texas Tech (35). The Cougars beat Arkansas, Mississippi, No. 26 SMU and No. 12 Baylor. In all, the meet featured 34 teams and over 230 runners.
Junior Cecily Lemmon-Lew led the way with a second-place finish in a 6K time of 20:32, just one second behind Texas Tech’s Lillian Badaru. She was trailed by senior Angela Wagner (12th), Sarah Edwards (18), Nicole Nielsen (20), and Rachel Lange (25).
“I feel good about the effort we showed today,” said BYU women’s cross country head coach Patrick Shane. “We beat some very good teams and we’ll have another chance at Texas Tech at regionals in a few weeks. Cecily had a phenomenal race and as a team it was a great opportunity to get ready for conference and the championship meets.”
Sophomore Lacey Cramer, running with an illness, arrived in 35th place overall followed by Sarah Yingling, Michaelanne Laurent, Sarah Hansen-Frey, Ashlee Thomas, Lisa Drury and Katie Swanson. The Cougars rested sophomore Katy Andrews while junior Whitney McDonald continues to battle injuries.
“I was happy with our team and even though I couldn’t see them behind me, I thought of them and knew they were running together,” Lemmon-Lew said. “I’m lucky to be a part of this team and we’re having a lot of fun together.”
Chile Pepper Invitational
2 C. Lemmon-Lew 20:32.6
12 A. Wagner 21:29.3
18 S. Edwards 21:39.5
20 N. Nielsen 21:40.6
25 R. Lange 21:47.7
35 L. Cramer 22:08.8
37 S. Yingling 22:11.8
46 M. Laurent 22:26.8
54 S. Frey 22:36.7
54 A. Thomas 22:37.8
57 L. Drury 22:40.7
81 K. Swanson 23:04.5
Pre-Nationals Invitational
White Race
12 M. Batty 24:02.8
19 T. Gruenewald 24:08.4
29 R. Nelson 24:14.7
44 A. Bahr 24:28.2
59 R. Merriman 24:38.7
61 N. Ogden 24:39.7
76 B. Hebbert 24:52.3
Open Race
3 T. Fuller 24:59.7
4 J. Nelson 25:00.8
6 J. Kotter 25:14.4
19 D. Shawhan 25:52.2
38 R. Frey 26:22.4