Cross Country Set to Host BIG EAST Championships
October 28, 2011 | Men's Cross Country
Oct. 28, 2011
2011 BIG EAST Cross Country Championships Program 
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville men's and women's cross country teams are set to host the 2011 BIG EAST Championships on Saturday, Oct. 29, at E.P. `Tom' Sawyer State Park. The men's 8K race starts at 11 a.m., with the women's 6K to begin at 11:50 a.m.
Live results can be accessed on the Delta Timing Group website at www.deltatiming.com.
A total of 14 teams will compete on the men's side, with three - No. 14 Providence, No. 16 Villanova and No. 29 Notre Dame - ranked in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association's top 30, and Louisville and Georgetown receiving votes. There are 16 teams slated to compete in the women's race, with seven ranked in the top 30: No. 4 Villanova, No. 6 Georgetown, No. 7 Providence, No. 9 Syracuse, No. 18 West Virginia, No. 23 Notre Dame and No. 28 Connecticut.
The Louisville men are coming off a strong performance at the Indiana State Pre-Nationals, placing seventh, the best finish since they placed seventh in 2006. Redshirt senior Matt Hughes made his season debut, finishing 34th overall, while sophomore Tyler Byrne registered a 37th-place showing. Byrne was the team's top placewinner in the previous three races, highlighted by victories at the Mid-America Opener and the Greater Louisville Classic.
At last year's BIG EAST Championships, the Cardinal men finished runner-up and were just five points shy of overcoming Syracuse for the team title; the squad only lost one letterwinner from that team. Hughes and Byrne earned all-BIG EAST honors, finishing ninth and 15th, respectively. The last time Louisville played host to the BIG EAST Championships was 2007, the same year the men collected their first cross country team title.
Freshman Madie Davidson has paced a young women's squad through all four meets this season, registering two top-five finishes: second at the Mid-America Opener and third at Navy's Salty Seadog Invitational. The Cardinals' lineup boasts three freshmen and three sophomores. Fellow freshman Michelle Molodynia has been the team's second finisher in three of four races, including a 21st-place finish at the Navy Invitational.
The women placed eighth at last year's BIG EAST Championships, but their top three placewinners have since graduated.
For all of the latest information on Louisville cross country and track and field, log on to uoflsports.com, or, for up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team's Twitter account at www.twitter.com/louisvilletrack.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
9:30 a.m. - Technical Meeting
10:40 a.m. - Men's race called to start
10:45 a.m. - National anthem
11:00 a.m. - Men's 8K race
11:30 a.m. - Women's race called to start
11:50 a.m. - Women's 6K race
12:40 p.m. - Awards ceremony
