Nov. 10, 2007
Peoria, Ill. - The 2007 Tiger Cross Country team concluded its season today at the NCAA Midwest Regional at Newman Golf Course in Peoria, Ill. as the men took home eighth place out of 23 teams, while the women also finished in eighth place out of 25 teams. The men finished with 239 points while the women tallied 241.
Sophomore Dan Hedgecock (St. Louis, Mo.) finished the 10K trek in 30:24, good enough for 13th place, qualifying him for the NCAA National Championships as an at-large selection. Hedgecock represents the second Tiger in the last two seasons to qualify, as Tim Ross accomplished the feat last season.
The Tiger men also got strong performances from Garett Jeffries (Clarkson Valley, Mo.), who finished 44th and Tim Cornell (Columbia, Mo.) who finished 56th. Several Tiger underclassmen had big performances as well. Freshman Dan Quigley (St. Louis, Mo.) set a personal record in the 10K as he came in 59th overall, finishing the race in 31:52. Larry Paul (Marthasville, Mo.) rounded out the top-five Tiger finishers as he clocked in at 32:08, finishing 67th , setting a personal record. Six of the seven Tiger runners finished in the top-half of the 155 runners in the field.
The Tiger women, led by senior Kate Greer (Marshalltown, Iowa) tallied 241 points, also placing eighth. Greer ran her best race of the season as the Tigers top finisher. Greer finished 27th overall while clocking in at 21:11 in the 6K race. Her time is a new personal best by 38 seconds, a great way to close out her senior season. Looking to the future, freshman Kinsey Farren (Dallas, Texas) was the second Tiger finisher as she came in at 21:28, placing her 38th, just six seconds off of her personal record, also set at Newman Golf Course.
The Tigers also got huge contributions from junior Ellen Ries (Ryan, Iowa), Kasey Kimball (Eureka, Mo.) and Emily Baker (Wildwood, Mo.). Ries, who spent much of the season nursing an ankle injury bounced back strong in the last three races. Ries finished 56th out of 178 runners and set a new personal record at 21:45. Kimball placed right behind Ries in 57th in her final collegiate race while Baker finished right behind her in 63rd. All seven Tiger runners finished in the top half of the field.
Big 12 foe Oklahoma State took home the Regional title finishing with 47 points, 10 ahead of Minnesota. The Tigers bested Big 12 opponents, Kansas, Kansas State and Nebraska. Three Big 10 schools topped the women's race, led by Minnesota who finished with 79 points.
NCAA Nationals will be held in Terre Haute, Ind. on Nov. 19. Hedgecock will look to rank among the nation's elite at the race. Stay tuned to www.mutigers.com for official results. For official results from today's race, log onto www.ncaasports.com/crosscountry.