Huskers to Compete at Wisconsin adidas Invitational

Huskers To Compete at Wisconsin adidas Invitational...
The Nebraska cross country team hits the road this weekend for the Wisconsin adidas Invitational on Saturday at University Ridge Golf Course in Madison, Wis. The Huskers will be running against some of the top programs in the country.

The Husker women will be first up at 11 a.m. as they take on the 6K course. After receiving votes in the national poll the past two weeks, the Huskers will have a shot to make a case to move into the nation’s top-30 with a strong performance as they battle six nationally ranked teams. Ranked fifth in the regional team rankings entering Saturday, the Huskers will battle with six nationally ranked teams, including host school Wisconsin, who holds a ranking of 26th. Other ranked teams include Florida (7th), Syracuse (11th), Michigan (22nd), Michigan State (20th) and North Carolina (29th).

Following the women’s race, the Husker men will then take to the course at 11:45 a.m. for the 8K race. Ranked eighth in the regional team rankins entering Saturday, the Huskers will take on eight nationally ranked teams. Host school Wisconsin enters the meet as the highest ranked team at sixth, with Syracuse (11th), Michigan (15th), Michigan State (18th), Providence (20th), Princeton (23rd), Georgetown (24th) and Indiana (25th).

Directions to Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course...
From Memorial Stadium start out going South on Stadium Dr. toward T street. Turn right onto T Street, turn right on N 9th Street, N 9th street becomes 10th street.  N 10th street becomes US-6 E, turn left onto Cornhusker Hwy. Merge onto I-180 N/US-34 W toward I-80. Merge onto I-80 E via EXIT 401D toward OMAHA (crossing into Iowa). Merge onto I-380 N/IA-27 N/US-218 N via EXIT 239B toward CEDAR RAPIDS/WATERLOO. Merge onto US-151 N/US-30 E via EXIT 16A toward MT VERNON. Merge onto US-151 N/IA-13 N via EXIT 259 toward MARION. Turn slight right onto US-151 N/DUBUQUE Rd. Continue to follow US-151 N. Merge onto US-151 N toward Dubuque (crossing into Wisconsin). Take the CR-P/CR-PD exit, EXIT 70, toward CROSS PLAINS. Turn left onto CR-P/CR-PD. 9002 County Road PD, approximately a seven-hour drive.

Crofford Makes History at Woody Greeno...
The Nebraska cross country teams put on an impressive show for the home crowd at Pioneers Park on Saturday Sept. 18, at the 21st Annual Woody Greeno/Nebraska Invitational. The Husker women won the university division team crown, while senior Lara Crofford won her second individual title.

The women’s victory marked the sixth straight year that the Huskers have taken the team title and the 16th time overall in the meet’s 21-year history.

Crofford became the first Husker to win back to back individual crowns since Fran ten Bensel (1990-92). A native of Newville, Pa., Crofford ran a time of 21:01.31, which marked her second individual title in 2010.

“Lara is running better than she has ever run, and the whole team did exceptionally well today,” Head Coach Jay Dirksen said.

David Adams was the men’s top finisher with a time of 24:54.1, finishing second behind Jim Walmsley of Air Force. Adams’ time of 24:29.4 is the sixth-best ever on the 8K course and the second-best time ever by a Husker, trailing Cleophas Boor’s time of 24:05.3 in 1996, which ranks third overall.

Overall for the women, Crofford led a 1-2 Husker finish with redshirt freshman Martina Barinova placing second. The Huskers placed four more in the top 15, with junior Erica Hamik finishing fifth, Ashley Miller coming in seventh, Jessica Furlan placing eighth and Jen Webers taking ninth. Freshman Sarah Plambeck just missed the top 15, placing 18th and running a time of 22:59.7. The team win was the Huskers’ sixth straight, their second-longest streak at the meet, as they won nine straight from 1990 to 1998.

After setting the longest winning streak in school history in 2009 with four team wins, the Husker men fell one point short of the 2010 team title. Adams led the Huskers by placing second, followed by Jesse Adams in eighth, Trevor Vidlak finished 10th, Todd Gulizia took 12th and Anthony Oberle placed 17th. The Husker men were runner-up to Wyoming, which finished with 33 points, while Nebraska had 34 points.

Huskers Dominant at Home...
Over the past 20 years the Nebraska men’s and women’s cross country teams have dominated the Woody Greeno/Nebraska Invitational, as the women have totaled 16 wins and the men have added another 11.

The women have put their wins together in bunches, as they have currently won the past six meets. The Huskers won the 2010 title behind individual winner Lara Crofford.

The Husker men set their longest streak in 2009 with four straight team titles. Following back-to-back wins in 1990-91, the Huskers then reeled off three straight wins from 1995 to 1997. Following a tie with Air Force in 1999, the Huskers won their seventh team crown in 2002, before beginning their win streak in 2006. Most recently the Huskers won the 2009 crown behind individual winner David Adams. The Husker men finished runner-up in 2010 behind Wyoming.

Adams Looks to Lead Young Team in Wisconsin…
David Adams has been the top Cornhusker since his initial season as a redshirt freshman in 2007. Adams was the Huskers’ top finisher in every race in 2009 except the season opener at the Creighton/Nebraska-Omaha Classic. His 22nd and 20th-place finishes, respectively, in the Big 12 and NCAA Midwest Region Championships were the best individual performances by a Nebraska harrier since 2002.

He was the fifth Husker on the men’s side to win the Woody Greeno/Nebraska Invitational individual crown and the first since James Bowler in 2002. Adams’ 2009 time of 24:29.4 was the sixth-best time ever run on the 8K course and the second-best time ever by a Husker, trailing Cleophas Boor’s time of 24:05.3 in 1996, which ranks third overall. Adams joined former Husker winners Bowler (2002), Boor (1996), David Iteffa (1991) and Joe Kirby (1990).  Adams was the men’s 2010 top finisher with a time of 24:54.1 finishing second behind Jim Walmsley from Air Force.

Crofford Wins back-to-back Individual Crowns...
Lara Crofford won her second crown at the Creighton/UNO Class on Sept. 4 in Omaha, Neb.  She won her first title as a freshman running the 5K race in 18:34, and she improved her time in the 2010 5K race to 18:11, beating the competition by 44 seconds.

Crofford became the first Husker woman to win back-to-back individual crowns at the Woody Greeno/Nebraska Invitational since Fran ten Bensel (1990-92). Crofford led a 1-2 Husker finish with redshirt freshman Martina Barinova placing second. Crofford won her second individual crown of the 2010 season and looks to lead the women at the Wisconsin adidas Invitational.
 
Husker Women Push to Emerge in the Top 30...
After a strong start to the 2010 season the Husker women look to emerge into the top 30 teams in the nation. In the USTFCCCA week two national rankings Nebraska women earned 28 coaches votes to put them behind North Carolina, which received 30 coaches votes to rank 30th in the Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll.

The women were ranked fourth in the Midwest Region going into week two of the 2010 season. After the second sweep for the Husker ladies, Nebraska moved up to third in the Midwest region in the week two polls, just behind Iowa State (15th nationally) and Iowa (25th nationally). After a week off the Husker women fall back to fifth in the regional polls but hope to push past some teams as they compete this weekend at the Wisconsin adidas Invitational against six nationally ranked teams.