TicketsNov. 13, 2010
ROCHESTER, Mich. - University of Cincinnati junior Eric Finan (New Richmond, Ohio/New Richmond) finished in first place overall Saturday, Nov. 13, at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Cross Country Championships at the Katke-Cousins Golf Course on the campus of Oakland University.
"With about one kilometer to go, roughly 15 runners had a chance to win and Eric emerged from the pack," said UC head coach Bill Schnier. "It was the best cross country race I've been a part of since coming to UC."
Finan finished the men's 10k run in 30:25.4 minutes, propelling the UC men's team to a ninth-place finish with 277 points after being projected to finish 12th. The Cincinnati women's team ended the day in 20th place, with a 550-point tally.
The next Bearcat to finish the men's race was senior Tommy Morgan (Maineville, Ohio/Kings), who ended the run in 44th place with a 31:28.2 time, followed by sophomore Oliver Book (Borden, Ind./Providence), who finished 64th overall with a time of 31:58.4.
Finishing just behind Book at 66th place was senior David Barry (Vandalia,Ohio/Butler), who ran the course in 31:58.9. Sophomore Chase Beckmann (Blacklick, Ohio/Gahanna Lincoln) finished in 102nd place with a time of 32:38.8, while freshmen Evan Baum (Shaker Heights, Ohio/St. Ignatius) and Eric Hauser (Mason, Ohio/William Mason) finished back to back in 151st and 152nd place with times of 33:34.4 and 33:34.7, respectively.
The first Bearcat to finish the 6k race in the women's division was senior Lilian Jelimo (Kapsabet, Kenya/Kapsabet Girls) with a time of 21:52.3, good for 54th place. Following Jelimo was fellow senior Michele McKenney (Cincinnati, Ohio/McNicholas), who recorded 22:18.7-minute time and finished 77th overall.
Cincinnati junior runners Alison Zukowski (Mentor, Ohio/St. Mark's) and Jill Glassmeyer (Cincinnati,Ohio/McAuley) ran times of 23:02.1 and 23:06.7, placing 123rd and 128th, respectively.
Fresh off of homecoming queen honors, senior Katie Lewnard (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mother of Mercy) placed 175th overall with a time of 24:00.1. Finishing the race for the Bearcats were sophomore Cortney Staruch (Hinckley, Ohio/Medina Highland), who placed 186th with a time of 24:23.1, and senior Emily Thompson (North Bend, Ohio/Taylor), who finished 205th overall with a time of 24:53.0.
The University of Wisconsin won the overall men's race with a 32-point score. Michigan State University emerged victorious in the women's division, with an 80-point tally.
Finan's first-place finish automatically qualifies him for a berth at the 2010 NCAA Championship in Terre Haute, Ind., on Monday, Nov. 22. The men's championship race is scheduled for a 12:48 p.m. start time.