Bucknell Women's Cross Country Finishes 10th, Men 25th, at Paul Short Invitational
Oct. 1, 2005
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Bucknell cross country competed at the Paul Short Invitational in Bethlehem, Pa., early Saturday afternoon. The Bison women ran very well as they placed 10th out of 47 teams, while the men finished in the 25th slot, of 44 teams. Winning the meet on the women's side was Columbia, and Georgetown claimed the top spot for the men. For the Bison women, junior Jenny Stevens (Laceyville, Pa./Wyoming Valley West) once again was the top runner, finishing 31st overall (out of 315 runners), with a time of 21 minutes, 27.9 seconds. Stevens finished first for Bucknell in last week's George Washington Invitational. Second for the Blue and Orange was junior Leanna Nastase (Beaverdale, Pa./Forest Hills), with a time of 21:45.9, good enough for 48th place. Sophomore Erin Cranmer-Hart (Slippery Rock, Pa./Slippery Rock) finished third for the Bison, 65th overall (21:56.9), while junior Lauren Bricker (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield) finished fourth on the squad, 86th overall (22:08.7). Rounding out Bucknell's scorers was junior Christa Sawko (Montoursville, Pa./Montoursville), in 110th place overall and fifth for the Bison (22:22.8). The women defeated Patriot League foes in Army, Navy, Lafayette and Colgate. "Our women ran a very nice team race," said head Coach Kevin Donner. "It was not quite our best performance, but we did beat some tough teams that we haven't in awhile. There is still room for improvement."
On the men's side, junior Matt Forys (Howell, N.J./Howell) was Bucknell's first runner to cross the finish line, placing 100th overall (out of 300 runners), with a time of 25:17. Ten places behind Forys was the Bison's second-best runner, junior Chris Norcea (Elwood city, Pa./Lincoln) with a time of 25:21.
Sophomore Mike Gibney (Wading River, N.Y./Shoreham Wading River) and senior Ryan Delaney (Seattle, Wash./Roosevelt) finished within five places and three second of one another, finshing third and fourth for Bucknell with times of 25:39 (140th overall) and 25:42 (145th overall), respectively. The last of the Bison's scorers was senior Kevin Fortkiewicz (Bloomfield, N.J./Bloomfield), finishing 176th overall, with a time of 25:58. "We [the men] didn't run our full strength as we held out sophomore Wallace Campbell (Montgomery, Ala./Montgomery Acad.) due to sickness," said Donner. "Our guys started out too fast, considering their level of fitness right now, which made them pay a price in the second half of the race." The Paul Short Invitational was run on the same course that will be used for both the Patriot League and Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships. "It's good to get on the course where two major championships will be held later this season," said Donner, "it will help us get ready for when those races arrive." Bucknell cross country will return to action in two weeks, Oct. 15, at the Penn State National Invitational.
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