Notre Dame cross country results at Pre-National meet

Cross Country Finish High In The Field At Pre-National Meet

Irish men finish second, women 11th in a Pre-National meet featuring many of
the nation's top  teams at Furman University, the future site of the 2001
NCAA Championship. 

    GREENVILLE, SC -- (10-13-01) The University of Notre Dame men's and
women's cross country teams kept their early-season momentum going strong
with two impressive finishes at the Pre-National meet in Greenville, SC,
Saturday afternoon. The men's team claimed second place in its race, while
the women's team continued to show its improvement by posting an 11th-place
finish in its respective competition.
    The Irish men, who were without the talents of senior Ryan Shay in the
meet, took second place behind #1 Colorado. The Buffalos won the meet with
62 points, followed by Notre Dame's team total of 172.
    Senior Luke Watson served as the team leader in the race on Saturday,
finishing fourth in 24:17 and establishing himself as one of the contenders
for the NCAA title on November 19. Classmate Marc Striowski crossed the line
next in 12th place, followed closely by sophomore Todd Mobley in 14th.
    Keeping up his string of impressive races, senior Sean Zanderson ended
up as Notre Dame's fourth runner, navigating the course in 25:21 and
finishing 51st. Sophomore Mario Bird rounded out the Irish entries in the
field, taking 91st place in 25:48.
    The women's team wound up 11th in their highly competitive race, led by
freshman Lauren King in 15th place. The Irish rookie was competing in just
her second collegiate race and is now a threat to earn All-America honors at
the national meet next month.
    Sophomore Megan Johnson stepped up to the challenge on Furman's campus
as well, finishing second on the team and 52nd overall in 22:13. Junior
Jennifer Handley, who has been one of the most consistent performers on the
roster this season, placed 65th.
    Notre Dame's fourth and fifth scoring runners in the women's race ended
up in 121st and 132nd place to give the Irish a team score of 385, just 13
points out of a berth in the top-10.
    Both teams will get a chance to rest next weekend before the BIG EAST
Championship at Van Cortland Park in New York on Oct. 26.

Notre Dame Women's Individual Results

15. Lauren King, 21:20
52. Megan Johnson, 22:13
65. Jennifer Handley, 22:25
121. Jennifer Fibuch, 23:09
132. Muffy Schmidt, 23:20
139. Christi Arnerich, 23:25
168. Julia Schmidt, 23:53

Women's Gold Top-15 Team Results

1. Stanford, 72 pts.
2. Brigham Young, 74 pts.
3. North Carolina State, 142 pts.
4. Boston College, 150 pts.
5. Washington, 231 pts.
6. Virginia, 265 pts.
7. Villanova, 267 pts.
8. Colorado State, 285 pts.
9. Yale, 306 pts. 
10. Marquette, 362 pts.
11. Notre Dame, 385 pts.
12. Dartmouth, 412 pts.
13. Toledo, 422 pts.
14. Minnesota, 425 pts.
15. Miami (Ohio), 460 pts.

Notre Dame Men's Team Results

4. Luke Watson, 24:17
12. Marc Striowski, 24:45
14. Todd Mobley, 24:46
51. Sean Zanderson, 25:21
91. Mario Bird, 25:48

Men's Gold Race Top-15 Team Results

1. Colorado, 62 pts.
2. Notre Dame, 172 pts.
3. Air Force, 184 pts.
4. UC Santa Barbara, 189 pts.
5. Arizona, 198 pts.
6. Eastern Michigan, 208 pts.
7. Villanova, 212 pts.
8. Duke, 215 pts. 
9. Arizona State, 231 pts.
10. Wake Forest, 265 pts.
11. Indiana, 329 pts.
12. Washington State, 353 pts.
13. Florida State, 356 pts.
14. Miami, 395 pts.
15. Loyola, 437 pts.

#### 
 Alan Wasielewski, Publicity Assistant
University of  Notre Dame Sports Information
112 Joyce Center, Second Floor
Notre Dame, IN 46556
(219) 631-3397/(219) 631-7941 (fax)
cell phone: 219-315-5746
E-mail: [email protected]

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