McKay, Cardinal Men Finish Third at NCAA Southeast Regional

Saturday, November 14

E.P. 'TOM' SAWYER PARK

10:00 AM

University of Louisville

NCAA SOUTHEAST REGIONAL

McKay, Cardinal Men Finish Third at NCAA Southeast Regional

November 14, 2009 | Men's Cross Country

Nov. 14, 2009

Complete Results |  Photo Gallery 

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville men's cross country team finished third at the NCAA Southeast Regional on Saturday at E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park, while Tarah McKay earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships with her third place finish in the women's race.

"I am excited about the men's third place finish and very optimistic that we will advance to the national championship," said U of L head coach Brice Allen. "With Virginia being in the fifth position they should push both Duke and us in for the at-large bid which would make five teams out of the Southeast Region. McKay is a lock for an individual berth for nationals and she ran the best she ever has at the regional event. I feel that she is going to have an outstanding national meet."

The no. 24 ranked Cardinal men started off the day with a strong third place finish out of 35 teams in their 10,000-meter race with a score of 121 points. The College of William and Mary, who is ranked eighth by the USTFCCCA, took the men's team title for the second straight year with 49 points, while no. 16 North Carolina State was runner-up with a score of 99 points to earn the second automatic bid. Louisville finished ahead of no. 30 Duke and no.19 Virginia who finished fourth and fifth with scores of 131 and 133, respectively.

Leading the way for the Cardinal men was redshirt senior Cory Thorne who placed eighth overall in the field of 230, just missing out on an automatic qualifying bid to the NCAA Championships with a strong time of 30:23.52. He earned his third All-Region Performer nod.

"The competition today was pretty solid," said Thorne. "I think I ran well, it was all I had, so I can't complain. The course was perfect today. It didn't rain and it was the first race in the last four that there wasn't mud or puddles. The weather was perfect."

Redshirt junior Michael Eaton added a 16th place finish with a time of 30:41.12, which was also good for his third All-Region Performer award. Also earning his first All-Region Performance honor was junior Matt Bruce in 24th overall at 31:05.74.

Redshirt sophomore Matt Hughes and sophomore Luke Lovelace helped secure third place for the men with finishes of 32nd and 41st respectively. Hughes navigated the course in 31:26.23, while Lovelace was just over ten seconds behind at 31:36.96. Sophomore Chase Violet also finished the race for the Cardinals.

In the women's 6,000-meter race, the Cardinals placed seventh out of 35 squads with a team score of 234 points. No.15 Duke captured the women's team title with 69 points and was followed by no. 19 and defending regional champion Virginia who accumulated 99 points. Both teams secured automatic bids to the NCAA Championships. Rounding out the top five were North Carolina State with 135 points, William & Mary with 145 points and North Carolina with 167 points.

McKay, senior, paced the Cardinals with a third place finish, an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships, a fourth consecutive All-Region Performer award, and a time of 20:17.34.

"This was my last time competing and I was really hoping for a good race," said McKay. "It's been a good season so far. Overall, I was pretty happy with the race. This is the first time that I have been able to go automatically to nationals."

Just missing out on her third All-Region nod was junior Emily Borsare in 30th with a time of 21:31.84. Senior Kim Grieshaber added a 39th place finish with her time of 21:41.84, while senior Kathryn Long placed 72nd in 22:21.57. Senior Kortni Dukes rounded out the scoring for the Cardinals in 92nd at 22:40.86. Also completing the race for the Cards were seniors Kat Alcorn and Kelsey Page.

The top two teams and four individuals not on qualifying teams in each race earned automatic bids to the 2009 NCAA Championships. Two at-large individual and 13 at-large team bids will be announced tomorrow. In addition, the top 25 runners in each race received All-Region Performer honors.

Up next, the Cardinal men's team as well as Thorne, Eaton, and Bruce must anxiously await the selection committee's decision to see if they will advance to the NCAA Championships with an at-large bid. A total of 31 men's and women's teams each along with 38 individual runners will earn bids to the NCAA Championships to be held at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course on November 23rd in Terre Haute, Ind.

For the most up-to-date information on Louisville Cross Country, visit www.uoflsports.com.

NCAA Southeast Regional ChampionshipsLouisville, Ky. - Nov. 14, 2009Men: 10 km / Women: 6 km
MENS RESULTS (35 Teams)1.  #8 William and Mary 49 points2.  #16 N.C. State      99 points3.   #24 LOUISVILLE      121 points4.  #30 Duke        131 points5.  #19 Virginia        133 points6.  North Carolina      204 points7.  Eastern Kentucky    218 points8.  Virginia Tech       238 points9.  Liberty         282 points10. George Mason        340 points
U of L Men's Individual Finishers (Field of 230)8.  Cory Thorne      30:23.5216. Michael Eaton      30:41.1224. Matt Bruce        31:05.7432. Matt Hughes      31:26.2341. Luke Lovelace      31:36.9676. Chase Violet        32:35.13
WOMENS RESULTS (35 Teams)1.  #15 Duke        69 points2.  #19 Virginia        113 points3.  N.C. State      135 points4.  William and Mary    145 points5.  North Carolina      167 points6.  James Madison       225 points7.   LOUISVILLE      234 points8.  Kentucky        256 points9.  Richmond        309 points10. Eastern Kentucky    332 points
U of L Women's Individual Finishers (Field of 237)3.  Tarah McKay      20:17.3430. Emily Borsare      21:31.8439. Kim Grieshaber        21:41.8472. Kathryn Long        22:21.5792. Kortni Dukes        22:40.86141.    Kat Alcorn        23:16.07164.    Kelsey Page      23:34.45