Nebraska women finish third, men seventh at regionals

Savoy, Ill. -- The Nebraska women's cross country team finished third and the men tied for seventh at the Midwest Regional Championships in Savoy, Ill., on Saturday, Nov. 13.

The women were led by senior Michelle Brooks, who turned in her best performance of the season with a seventh-place finish in 17:19, finished with 98 points to take third place. The top two finishers automatically qualified for the NCAA Championships on Nov. 22, while 13 at-large teams will also be chosen to compete for the national title.

Head Coach Jay Dirksen said the Huskers third-place finish put the team in a good position to be chosen to compete at nationals in Bloomington, Ind.

"The women ran a really solid race all the way through," he said. "I thought our top two in particular really ran well. I think it almost guarantees us a spot in the national meet. We should be one of the early at-large bids."

Senior Jaime Pauli continues to improve, running a career best 17:35 to finish in 11th place. Several Huskers ran solid races, including freshman Kathryn Handrup, who tied her best time of the season taking 23rd in 17:57. Close behind was junior Jaimie Kruger, who took 24th in 17:59, followed by senior Melinda Oliver, who ran a career-best time, taking 38th in 18:15. Rounding out the scoring for Nebraska was Amie Finkner, who took 45th in 18:28 and Mirjana Glisovic, who crossed the line in 18:34, good for 53rd-place.

Kansas State took the team title with 40 points, led by Amy Mortimer, who won the race in 16:59.

On the men's side, Marcus Witter ended his junior season on a high note, narrowly missed a top 10 finish. Witter took 11th, covering the 10,000-meter course in 31:09, and helping his team to 203 points to tie for seventh with Loyola (Ill.).

Aaron Carrizales was the second Husker to cross the line, finishing 26th in 31:37. Nebraka's next five finishers were all freshmen, competing in their first 10,000-meter event. Mike Kamm, took 56th in 32:31, while Jed Barta took 59th in 32:35. Ian Gray running in only his fourth race of the season, finished 70th in 32:50, followed by James De Bruhl, who placed 83rd in 33:07 and Jared Carlson, who finished 133rd in 35:05.

Dirksen said that although the men's season is over, this year's team made great strides especially with such a young squad.

"I think really the men made a tremendous improvement over last year," Dirksen said. "Considering that for five of them, this is the first 10,000-meter race they've ever run, I think they really did a great job."

Oklahoma State's Chuck Sloan took the individual title, finishing in 30:25, while Minnesota took the team title with 56 points.