Pre-Nationals XC 2014

Buffs Take Down Ducks in Terre Haute

Buffs Take Down Ducks in Terre Haute

Oct 18, 2014 by Meg Bellino
Buffs Take Down Ducks in Terre Haute
Through the mud and the cold, the #3 Georgetown women won the Pre-Nationals Invitational for the second straight year.

The Hoyas scored 110 points and were led by #19 Katrina Coogan who finished third in 20:37. Kelsey Smith (21:12) and Madeline Chambers' (21:13) 19th and 20th place finishes made three runners in the top 20, the only team to accomplish this feat. Andrea Keklak (31st) and Annamarie Maag (37th) rounded out the top 5, which was separated by only 48 seconds.

The #5 Oregon Ducks upset #2 Michigan 139-143 points to finish second and third in team standings. Michigan placed #4 Erin Finn fourth in 20:43 and #23 Shannon Osika 23rd. Brook Handler finished 25th. Oregon's pack was too tight, as Megan Patrignelli finished 18th in 21:12, with Frida Berge (26th), Maggie Schmaedick (27th), Alli Cash (32nd), and Brianna Nerud (36th) securing their runner-up finish. 

#9 Rachel Johnson claimed the victory in 20:21, respectively. In similar fashion to Crystal Nelson's victory in Wisconsin, Johnson took off and never lost steam to win by over 15 seconds. Princeton Sophomore Megan Curham was second and Cal Freshman Bethan Knights impressed with her fifth place finish.

In the men's race, the #1 Colorado Buffaloes and #5 Oregon Ducks turned it into a two team show. Colorado won with an outstanding 35 points to Oregon's 91 points. #1 Edward Cheserek continued his dominance by winning the race in 24:04, but had to fight for the victory. The Buff's #6 Blake Theroux finished just two seconds behind in 24:06, moving up 10 places over the final stretch of the race. 

Colorado's dominance outshined #8 Eric Jenkins' fourth place finish for the Ducks. The Buffs finished 2-4-8-9-12, and 14 with #13 Ben Saarel, #10 Ammar Moussa, Jake Hurysz#7 Pierce Murphy and Connor Winter. In what appeared to be a timing chip mishap, Hurysz was temporarily removed from the results. Winter's strong 14th place finish still would have clinched the Buffs the Pre-Nats title.