Red Flash Men Place 9th, Women Take 8th at George Mason Cross Country Invite

CENTREVILLE, Va. (Oct. 5, 2008) – The Saint Francis University men’s and women’s cross country teams competed at the George Mason Invitational on Saturday, placing 9th and 8th, respectively.   Sixteen men’s teams and 16 women’s teams competed in the event.  

Kyle Gibson (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon McMillan) was the top finisher for the Red Flash men, crossing the line in 50th place with a time of 26:41.  Timothy Wertner (Chambersburg, Pa./Greencastle-Antrim) and Christopher Mills (Pikesville, Md./Western Tech) weren’t far behind at 56th and 58th place, respectively.  Wertner finished the course in 26:49 while Mills crossed a second later at 26:50.  Ryan Bair (Leola, Pa./Conestoga Valley) and Jeremy Tice (Littleton, Colo./Chatfield) also finished in the top 100, with Bair coming in at 70th and Tice finishing 89th.   The men finished with 269 points.

Virginia won the event for the men and had six of the top ten finishers, including the top three, for a total of only 19 points.  Emil Heinking took first in a time of 24:40.  Cavalier teammate Ryan Collins took second in 25:46, and Graham Tribble finished third in 24:48.  Brendan Martin of Columbia placed fourth, and Greg Kelsey of Maryland came in fifth.  

Columbia (50 points) took second in the event; followed by Maryland (85), host George Mason (121), and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (178).  

Junior Anna Hoffman (Enon Valley, Pa./Mohawk) took 17th overall for the women in the 6k, with a time of 22:30.  Shannon Kovak (Connellsville, Pa./Connellsville) finished next for the Red Flash in a time of 23:08, good for 28th place.  Allyson Sheehan (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) placed 64th (24:37), Sarah Grossi (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon McMillan) took 85th (25:13) and Julie Yasko (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) was 88th (25:24).  

Virginia took the event with 30 points, followed by Columbia (41), Maryland (92), Northeastern (127) and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington (178).

Lauretta Dezubay and Morgane Gay of Virginia took first and second, with Deubay finishing in 21:29 and Gay crossing in 21:37.  Meaghan Lessard of Columbia took third (21:42), while Stephanie Garcia of Virginia placed fourth (21:55) and Erin Matyus of Maryland crossed fifth (21:59).

Both Red Flash teams will compete at the Eagle Cross Country Invitational in Fort Roberdeau, Pa. on Oct. 12.