Cross Country Teams Finish 2nd at Winthrop XC Classic
9/24/2009 10:31:58 AM
Winthrop, SC- Erskine cross country performed well this past weekend at the 2009 Winthrop Asics Fall Classic. For an early season meet, the Fleet competed surprisingly well finishing second among all NCAA II Institutions competing.
Erskine's men's team, led by senior Adam Groblewski, finished second to regional rival Mars Hill in the 8k race. Groblewski completed the course in 26:49, only :17 seconds off his school record of 26:32. Groblewski was quickly followed by sophomore Chas Culberson who set a 1:30 personal best finishing in 27:15. Next for the Fleet was Joseph Sell who ran a strong 28:38 effort. Matt Diaz came in next, also setting a huge personal best with a time of 29:09. Diaz was injured most of last season, but is coming on stronger than ever. Erskine's Chance Ellison dropped out of the race to avoid injuring his achilles, so Robert McCarthy brought up pack and finished fifth for the Fleet. With the strong performance, the Fleet were only 32 points behind Mars Hill, and defeated Benedict, Newberry, and Anderson.
Erskine's women's squad finished second out of six and was led by junior Liz Loftis who completed the course in a strong 21:55. The rest of Erskine's scorers came in very quickly. Katie Henderson ran second for the Fleet finishing in 22:03 while Kateryna Slyepstova finished in 22:07. Each of these girls are running great considering how early it is in the season. Finishing fourth for the Fleet was junior Katie Moore in 22:43. Becky Fick rounded out the Fleet's top 5 in 23:51. Also competing for the Fleet Saturday were Mandy Brandon, Sarah Money, and Jessica Salters. Salters was forced to drop out of the race due to a sprained ankle.
The Fleet will return to action Friday October 2 as they compete at the UNC-Charlotte Cross Country Invitational at McAlpine Greenway Park.