AU Cross Country Runs Well at Mount St. Mary's 5k Duals
Aug. 29, 2008
WASHINGTON - The American University men's and women's cross country teams opened their 2008 seasons on Friday with strong showings at the Mount St. Mary's 5k Duals. The men's team finished with an overall record of 4-1 led by second-place finisher Nick Ryan. The women's team received a second-place finish of its own from freshman Octavia Rinehardt as it finished 4-2.
Ryan completed the 5k course in a time of 16:12.45 to pace the Eagles and finished second only to Maryland's Alex Lundy who ran a 16:11.53. Jacob Shelly earned a tenth place finish with a time of 16:27.40. Freshmen Josh Olsen (16:29.24), Craig Brown (16:30.80) and Anthony Rowe (16:33.24) turned in impressive finishes of 12th, 13th and 14th, respectively, in their collegiate debuts and were followed closely by Colin Eustis (16:37.66) in 15h.
In the dual scoring the men's team finished 4-1 and defeated George Washington, 15-50, Mount St. Mary's, 18-45, Temple, 19-44, and Maryland, 28-31. UMBC, 31-25, was the only team to defeat AU.
Rinehardt placed second in the women's race with a time of 18:57.22 to open her college running career. Amy Watson of Navy won the race in 18:46.98. Greta Wicklund placed 10th in a 5k personal best time of 19:37.76 and freshman Lauren Scholl rounded out the top-25 in 20:36.88.
The women's team defeated George Washington, 24-31, Mount St. Mary's, 26-30, Temple, 28-29, and UMBC, 28-29, to finish 4-2. Navy, 44-19, and Maryland, 32-25, were the only teams to defeat AU.
American will return to action on Saturday, Sept. 13, at the Navy Invitational in Annapolis, Md.
