Oct. 26, 2000

COLUMBIA, Mo. - The University of Missouri cross country team travels to Boulder, Colo., this weekend for the Big 12 Conference Championships. The race will be run at the Buffalo Ranch on the school's South Campus. The men's 8K race is set to begin at 10:00 a.m. (MDT) and the women's 6K will begin at 11:00 a.m. (MDT).

The team last competed at the Iowa State Pre-Nationals Oct. 14. The women finished 19th out of 56 teams at ISU. Junior Ann Marie Brooks paced the women finishing 16th. She finished in 21:39.20, which was her second-best time of the season. Sophomore Kerry Hils came in 51st (22:07.50) while another sophomore Amy Chipman placed 81st (22:24.90). The men finished 36th at the ISU meet. Senior Nick Smith paced the Tiger harriers in 37th place (31:41.30). Senior Adam MacDowell (32:33.80) finished 123rd.

At the 1999 Big 12 Championships, the MU men missed second place by one point. Leading the team was Adam MacDowell with an 11th-place finish. Greg Speicher also finished in the top-20 in 18th place. Joel McCune finished 22nd, Steve Wade finished 27th and Nick Smith finished 28th to round out the top-30 for the men. The then 21st-ranked Missouri women placed third at the 1999 Big 12 Championships. Anna Gullinsgrud led the women harriers to an eighth-place finish. Amy Chipman came in 18th, followed by Ann Marie Brooks in 27th and Katie Meyer in 30th.

"This is a meet our kids have been preparing for all year. We had a great week of practice last week and our kids are positive about being in the thick of things," said cross country Head Coach Jared Wilmes.