University of Missouri
Hawkeye Invitational
Mizzou Cross Country Opens 2016 at Hawkeye Invitational
9/2/2016 9:30:00 PM | Cross Country
Drew White finishes fifth for the men, Valeska Halamicek sixth for the women
COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Mizzou Cross Country team opened its 2016 campaign on Friday at the Hawkeye Invitational in Iowa City, Iowa. Highlighting the day for the Tigers was redshirt senior Drew White (Crystal City, Mo.), who finished fifth overall on the men's side, and redshirt junior Valeska Halamicek (Weldon Spring, Mo.), who finished sixth overall on the women's side.
The women began the day for the Tigers, running a 3000m race. Halamicek ran at the front of the pack for the majority of the first-half of the race before finishing in sixth place with a final time of 10:29.0. Also finishing in the top-20 for Mizzou was sophomore Hannah Thomas (Urbandale, Iowa), who finished 17th with a final time of 10:39.0.
Freshman Susan Forbis (Lewisville, Texas) and freshman Faramola Shonekan (Columbia, Mo.) each made their Tiger debuts in the race, finishing with a final time of 11:34.4 and 12:01.1, respectively.
"I thought the student-athletes who we had race competed hard," said head coach Marc Burns. "I was really excited to see Val out in front for most of the race. That's a breakthrough performance for her that will not only help this fall, but in the spring as well. The ones we had out there raced hard and competed. This is something we can build from."
Valeska Halamicek (@VaIeska) finishes 6th in the women's 3k at the Hawkeye Invitational with a time of 10:29.#MIZ?? pic.twitter.com/v3kePEHqzb
— MIZZOU Track & Field (@MIZ_TrackField) September 2, 2016
On the men's side, White paced the Tigers with his fifth place finish in the 6000m race, posting a final time of 18:05.6. Finishing second for Mizzou and 25th overall was redshirt freshman Michael Widmann (Naperville, Ill.) who crossed the finish line at 18:44.5.
"Drew White had a great start to the season," said Burns. "He has trained hard this summer and it showed today. Michael Widmann had a great debut after redshirting last season. His development has been phenomenal from a year ago to today. Having Zach Cook back in the lineup was great as well."
Drew White finishes 5th in the 6k with a time of 18:05.57.#MIZ ?????? pic.twitter.com/nwWJUyVNBB
— MIZZOU Track & Field (@MIZ_TrackField) September 3, 2016
Mizzou will next compete at the Commodore Classic on Saturday, Sept. 17 in Nashville, Tenn., where the full Tiger squad is scheduled to race.
For all the latest on Mizzou Cross Country and Track & Field, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram (MIZ_TrackField).
Women's Results (3000m)
6. Valeska Halamciek, 10:29.0 // 17. Hannah Thomas, 10:39.9 // 49. Bianca Mello, 11:11.3 // 63. Carolyn White, 11:28.3 // 68. Susan Forbis, 11:34.4 // 80. Faramola Shonekan, 12:01.1
Men's Results (6000m)
5. Drew White, 18:05.6 // 25. Michael Widmann, 18:44.5 // 51. Brian Hernan, 19:18.3 // 60. Zach Cook, 19:26.7 // 64. Tyler Schneider, 19:34.7 // 65. Ben Goodman, 19:35.0 // 75. Tyler Gillam, 19:51.2 // 81. Taylor Stephen, 20:09.6 // 82. Tim Johnson, 20:16.5
Players Mentioned
