Tech Women Take Fifth at Conference Crossover Invitational
ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – The Michigan Tech cross country team competed at the Conference Crossover Invitational on Saturday (Oct. 12), hosted by Lewis University. Facing strong winds and a wet, muddy course, the women's team finished fifth and the men placed 19th.
Emily Byrd finished sixth in the 6K race by crossing the line at 22:53.1, her best time of the 2019 season. Gabrielle Feber finished 30th in the race with a time of 23:25.1, and Sam Kurkowski placed 50th as she clocked in at 23:42.9. Also scoring points for the Huskies was Carly Huggins in 73rd (24:02.1), Amanda Kautzer in 79th (24:07.2), Sarah Goble in 87th (24:14.4), and Michelle Bollini in 111th (24:29.8).
Mady Van Wieren (24:39.5), Julia Manzano (24:48.1), Madisyn Estkowski (24:56.9), Lauren Konkol (25:06.9), Abby Martin (25:15.9), Theresa Passe (25:24.5), Katelyn Feldpausch (25:29.5), Molly Greene (26:13.2), and Katherine Schneider (26:51.0) also ran for Tech on the day.
The Huskies placed fifth in the women's race with 216 points, placing them 10 points ahead of Southern Indiana and five points behind Saginaw Valley State. Grand Valley State scored 32 team points to win the event, with Allie Ludge of GVSU winning the race with a time of 22:12.1.
"It was a big step forward for our women today," Tech head coach Jake Isaacson said. "We had some women step up big time today, but we still need to patch up our gaps if we want to be our best."
In the men's 8K, Robert Beggs was the first Husky to cross the line as the junior finished 104th with a time of 26:50.4. The next Tech runner to finish and score points was Luke Moore in a time of 27:00.5 to place 119th, followed closely by Robbie Watling in 125th with a time of 27:02.4. Also scoring for Tech on the day was Ben Passolt (155th, 27:16.8), Chase Scheel (163rd, 27:20.8), Lucas Betzoldt (201st, 27:43.1), and Zach Werth (204th, 27:43.6).
Nick McKenzie (28:28.3), Robert Dwyer (28:36.9), Aiden Truettner (28:56.8), and Bernard Kluskens (29:32.6) also competed for Michigan Tech in today's 8K race.
Tech scored 581 points to finish 19th as a team, 19 points ahead of Missouri S&T and 51 points behind Lindenwood. Grand Valley State scored 87 points to win the meet, and Gidieon Kimutai of Missouri Southern finished first with a time of 27:07.5.
"I think the men got overwhelmed right at the start and never recovered," Isaacson said. "While we didn't race our full squad, I wanted these men to take advantage of the opportunity they had and they came up short of our standard."
The Huskies conclude the regular season at the U.P. Championships at the NMU Golf Course in Marquette, Michigan on October 18.