McKay Places 14th, Cardinal Men Finish 9th at Pre-Nationals

Saturday, October 17

Terre Haute, Ind.

11:00 AM

University of Louisville

Pre-Nationals

McKay Places 14th, Cardinal Men Finish 9th at Pre-Nationals

October 17, 2009 | Women's Cross Country

Oct. 17, 2009

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - The University of Louisville men's cross country team finished ninth, while the women placed 24th at Saturday's Pre-Nationals hosted by Indiana State University at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course.

"I am pleased with the men's finish and their win over Iowa State and Minnesota which should help us in pursuit of national prestige," said Allen. "On the women's side, I thought Tarah ran especially well and she continues to be a staple for us."

The Cardinal men placed ninth with 289 points in the field of 35 teams in the white race, while no. 1 ranked Stanford raced past the stiff competition with 47 points to earn the win. No. 4 Colorado finished runner-up with 130 points and no. 6 BYU took third with 163 points. U of L finished ahead of no. 18 and no. 30 Minnesota who took 10th and 11th, respectively.

Redshirt senior Cory Thorne led the way for the Cardinal men as he navigated the 8,000-meter course in 24:14.8 to finish 30th out of 237 runners in the white race. Junior Matt Bruce was the second Card to cross the finish line at 33rd overall with a career best time in the event of 24:17.6, while redshirt junior Michael Eaton placed 36th also with a career best time in the meet of 24:20.0. Rounding out the scoring for U of L was junior Matt Hughes in 92nd place with a time of 25:01.0 and Scott McClain who finished 98th at 25:05.0.

Also scoring finishing the race for Louisville were sophomores Luke Lovelace and Chase Violet.

On the women's side, the Cardinals picked up 608 points to take 24th overall in a field of 37 teams in the blue race, while no. 19 Colorado earned the team title with 94 points. No. 11 Florida State came in second with 135 points and was followed by no. 4 Oregon in third with 169 points.

Senior Tarah McKay led the efforts of the Cardinal women with a 14th place finish in the field of 278 competitors as she completed the 6,000-meter course in 20:52.1. McKay extended her streak to 23 career races that she has been the top finisher in red and black.

Senior Kim Grieshaber was the second scorer for U of L as she crossed in a career best time of 21:30.9 to place 43rd, while fellow senior Kathryn Long took 149th with a time of 22:38.2. Seniors Kortni Dukes and Kelsey Page came across in 181st and 221st with times of 23:01.1 and 23:39.4, respectively, to cap the scoring for the Cards. Also completing the race was senior Kat Alcorn.

The Cardinals suffered a setback when health prevented junior Emily Borsare from finishing the race with just a half-mile left. She was in about the 36th position when she dropped out of the race.

"Our women's team suffered a severe blow in Borsare's inept," said Allen. "We're excited for her to regain health and look forward to her competing at the BIG EAST Championships."

Up next the Cards will take a week off from competition before heading to the BIG EAST Championships on Oct. 31 in Kenosha, Wisc.

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

Pre-NationalsTerre Haute, Ind. - Oct. 17, 2009Men: 8 km / Women: 6 km
MENS WHITE RACE RESULTS (35 Teams)1.  No. 1 Stanford      47 points2.  No. 4 Colorado      130 points3.  No. 6 BYU       163 points4.  No. 8 Portland      211 points5.  No. 12 Iona     218 points6.  No. 19 Arizona State    232 points7.  No. 21 New Mexico   278 points8.  No. 28 Florida State    288 points9.   LOUISVILLE      289 points10. No. 18 Iowa State   301 points
U of L Men's Individual Finishers (Field of 237)30. Cory Thorne 24:14.833. Matt Bruce   24:17.636. Michael Eaton 24:20.092. Matt Hughes 25:01.098. Scott McClain 25:05.0109.    Luke Lovelace 25:13.3197.    Chase Violet   26:20.6
WOMENS BLUE RACE RESULTS (37 Teams)1.  No. 19 Colorado     94 points2.  No. 11 Florida State    135 points3.  No. 4 Oregon        169 points4.  No. 13 Georgetown   200 points5.  No. 6 Stanford      206 points6.  Arizona         225 points7.  No. 7 Iowa State    231 points8.  No. 29 Iowa     283 points9.  UTEP            284 points10. No. 24 Michigan State   302 points24.  LOUISVILLE      608 points
U of L Women's Individual Finishers (Field of 278)14. Tarah McKay 20:52.143. Kim Grieshaber   21:30.9149.    Kathryn Long   22:38.2181.    Kortni Dukes   23:01.1221.    Kelsey Page 23:39.4229.    Kat Alcorn   23:56.2