Oct. 28, 2005
Yellow Springs, Ohio- The University of Illinois at Chicago cross country team landed in Ohio on Friday, ready to compete in the 2005 Horizon League Cross Country Championships on Saturday.
The event, hosted by Wright State University and held at John Bryan State Park in Yellow Springs, Ohio, begins with the men's 8,000-meter race at 11:00 a.m. CST. That is followed by the women's 5,000-meter event at approx. 11:40 a.m. CST.
After making the jump from sixth in 2003 to fifth last season, the UIC men's cross country team seeks to take an even bigger leap by finishing in the top three.
The Flames are equipped to accomplish the feat with a strong mix of veterans and young runners that have combined to help UIC earn its first USCCCA Midwest Region ranking in history. The squad came in at No. 13 in the latest poll.
Leading the way will be senior Mikhail Davidyan and juniors Sam Watson and Jim Sulzberger. All three have consistently turned in UIC's best three finishes all season long.
To get to a third-place finish or higher, UIC will need a lift from seniors Bob Dron and Graham Waller, sophomores Joseph Mbari, Jorge Flores, Thomas Chin and Tom Schutzius and freshman Alex Sutphen.
The UIC women's team will also need stellar showings across the board in order to improve on their sixth-place finish in 2004.
Junior Laura Macias, who has led the Flames in their last two regular season meets, will lead the way along with juniors Lisa Petty and Susie Martinez. Young runners Kerry Brennan, Renee Koziol, Danyelle Somerfield and Korinne Krych will also need to contribute strong times.
Check back here at uicflames.com for complete results from Saturday's league championships.
