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CHARLOTTE -- A solid sophomore class led the way for BYU as the Cougars ran away from No. 5 Georgetown and No. 8 North Carolina State to win the team title at the Great American Cross Country Festival. Sophomore Lindsey Thomsen nearly captured the individual title, battling it out with Kenya native Sylvia Chelimo of Gardner-Webb University over the last half mile of the race. Chelimo crossed the finish line in 16:55.7, less than two seconds ahead of Thomsen, who finished in 16:57.6 for the 5K course.
Another sophomore, Sarah Ellett, was the next runner to finish for the Cougars. Her 17:04.8 was good for fourth place overall, and senior All-American Sharolyn Shields (17:18.4) also recored a top-ten finish for BYU, coming in sixth. Redshirt freshmen Katie Martin (12th) and Nan Evans (14th) rounded out the scoring to give the Cougars a team total of 38.
North Carolina State was the only other team to finish three runners in the top ten, but the Wolfpack's fifth scorer finished in 21st place overall, deep enough to give BYU the winning edge.
After the race, coach Patrick Shane was pleased with his team's performance. He was especially optimistic about the future of his current number-one runner.
"I was just elated with Lindsey Thomsen's race today," Shane said. "She beat some of the best people in the country. If we can keep her healthy she's going to have a phenomenal year."
The Cougars will have one week to prepare for their next test as they compete again Saturday at the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto, California.
Great American X/C FestivalMcAlpine Greenway Park, Charlotte, NC
September 23, 2000
Collegiate Womens 5K
1. Sylvia Chelim Gardner-Webb 16:55.7 1
2. Lindsay Thompsen Brigham Young 16:57.6 2
3. Sheela Agrawal Duke 16:58.8 3
4. Sarah Ellet Brigham Young 17:04.8 4
5. Autumn Fogg Georgetown 17:13.4 5
6. Sharolyn Shields Brigham Young 17:18.4 6
7. Ann Somerville Michigan State 17:20.0 7
8. Lindsey Rogers NC State 17:23.0 8
9. Katie Sabino NC State 17:23.7 9
10. Christy Nichols NC State 17:25.5 10
11. Katie Nowak Ball St 17:26.6 11
12. Katie Martin Brigham Young 17:29.3 12
13. Beth Fonner NC State 17:30.1 13
14. Nan Evans Brigham Young 17:31.3 14
15. Amy Beatty Ball St 17:32.4 15
16. Kathy Kadziolka Ball St 17:34.3 16
17. Lorena Adams Georgetown 17:36.5 17
18. Jamie Krzyminski Michigan State 17:39.1 18
19. Jill Braley Furman 17:40.5 19
20. Megan Sullivan Duke 17:46.4 20
21. Diana Henderson NC State 17:49.0 21
22. Emily Enstice Georgetown 17:49.6 22
23. Katie Atlas Duke 17:50.9 23
24. Stacey Vidt Virgina Tech 17:53.5 24
25. Kristen Gordon Georgetown 17:55.1 25
26. Michelle Carson Michigan State 17:55.4 26
27. Melanie Steere Brigham Young 17:56.2 27
28. Erin Swain NC State 17:58.1 28
29. Gretchen Folck Ball St 18:03.7 29
30. Tara Haynes Brigham Young 18:04.3 30
Team Results
1. Brigham Young 2, 4, 6, 12, 14 = 38
2. NC State 8, 9, 10, 13, 21 = 61
3. Georgetown 5, 17, 22, 25, 35 = 104
4. Ball St 11, 15, 16, 29, 36 = 107
5. Duke 3, 20, 23, 34, 39 = 119
6. Michigan State 7, 18, 26, 40, 54 = 145
7. Virgina Tech 24, 31, 55, 57, 59 = 226
8. Furman 19, 44, 56, 60, 71 = 250
9. UNC-Charlotte 33, 47, 63, 69, 110 = 322
10. UNC-Greensboro 37, 53, 75, 77, 84 = 326
11. UNC-Asheville 42, 68, 70, 78, 86 = 344
12. Charleston Southern 38, 46, 85, 94, 103 = 366
13. Campbell 45, 51, 72, 105, 111 = 384
14. Western Carolina 65, 76, 80, 101, 104 = 426
15. Davidson 52, 81, 89, 106, 107 = 435
16. Coastal Carolina 66, 79, 82, 99, 112 = 438
17. UNC-Wilmington 58, 90, 98, 100, 114 = 460
18. Gardner-Webb 1, 102, 127, 133, 134 = 497
19. Winthrop 43, 97, 122, 125, 126 = 513
20. Virg. Military Inst. 83, 91, 119, 124, 128 = 545
21. High Point-NC 96, 135, 141, 142, 147 = 661
22. Wofford 130, 136, 144, 148, 149 = 707
The BYU women's cross country team will compete in the Great American Festival in Charlotte, North Carolina this weekend, while the men's team travels to Minneapolis to run in the Roy Griak Invitational.
Fresh off a victory over No. 16 Washington and No. 26 Weber State, the 6th-ranked BYU women will look to make a strong showing in Charlotte on Friday evening, as they are scheduled to compete against No. 5 Georgetown and No. 8 North Carolina Sate. The Cougars will be without one of their top runners for the meet. Tara Northcutt, the defending NCAA 10,000-meter champion, will miss the first few weeks of the season due to a knee injury. But even without one of his returning All-Americans, the depth of the Cougar lineup gives coach Patrick Shane confidence in his team's chances.
"This will be a very competitive field" Shane said. "We need everybody to go out and run well, but if we can do that, we should have a pretty good chance of winning."
BYU is looking to defend its 1999 national title despite losing three All-Americans from last year's team. Even though they have yet to compete in a major meet this year, the Cougars are already receiving national attention. Coach Shane and the team were featured in an article in the Sept. 19 sports section of USA Today.
Meahwhile, after knocking off No. 23 Weber State in a dual meet, the BYU men's team will look to make its case for a top twenty-five rankingwith a good race this weekend. The Minnesota meet will feature three top-ten teams in No. 5 Arizona, No. 6 Wisconsin, and No. 9 Oregon. Altogether, nine of the top 25 teams in the country will be competing Saturday.
The Roy Griak Invitational is the third-largest meet in the country, falling just behindthe NCAA Championship and the Pre-NCAA meet. Men's and women's teams from Division I, Division II, Division III and high school will compete in separate categories.
