The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
MAC Championships
Men Finish Third, Women Take Sixth At MAC Cross Country Championships
October 27 | Cross Country
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Men's Results (PDF) | Women's Results (PDF)
GRAND ISLAND, N.Y. – The University of Akron men's and women's cross country teams improved on their finishes from a year ago despite constant rain and temperatures in the upper 40s Saturday at the 2012 Mid-American Conference Championships.
Behind a top-10 finish from junior Brad Hough, the Zips men tied Miami (Ohio) for third place among nine teams with 73 points; just one point shy of second-place Central Michigan (72). The UA women finished sixth in a field of 12 with 178 points. Both squads placed seventh a year ago at the championship meet in Muncie, Ind.
Saturday's race was hosted by the University at Buffalo at Beaver Island State Park. The men's team from Eastern Michigan successfully defended its team title with 59 points while Toledo's women did the same with 24 points.
Although he had been limited to just one competition this fall due to injury, Hough repeated All-MAC First Team honors by finishing seventh individually in the men's 8K with a time of 25:00.2. Four more Zips would cross the line in succession starting in 15th place with Dylan Papp (25:24.4). Kyle Cochrun, who also missed the first three competitions due to injury, came in 16th with a time of 25:25.0, followed by Kyle Wheeler (25:26.2) and Zachary Goulet (25:26.4), who took the 17th and 18th positions, respectively.
Also in action for the Zips Saturday were Trevor Norris (26:03.07) and Nick Stroemple (26:39.5). EMU's Terefe Ejigu, who was last year's runner-up, claimed top individual honors with a time of 24:44.5.
For the fourth time this season, Maria Moore was the top Akron finisher on the women's side. The sophomore finished 25th overall individually with a 6K time of 22:22.9.
Fellow sophomores Morgan Willis (22:28.7) and Kayla Whitlow (22:36.0) were the next to cross the line for Akron in 28th and 37th-place, respectively. Alex Bowers (22:40.9) and Jillian Roth (22:52.7) came in 40th and 48th to round out the Zips' first five runners. Also competing for UA were Sarah Baker (22:56.4) and Lea Suess (23:14.5). Ohio's Julie Accurso was a repeat winner on the women's side with a 6K time of 20:48.4.
Both the Zips' men's and women's team placed higher than Kent State Saturday to earn 2.0 points for the annual PNC Wagon Wheel Challenge. The KSU men finished sixth with 164 points and the women were ninth with 213 points. Akron now leads the yearly count, 2.5-1.0.
Both of Akron's cross country teams will have two weeks to prepare for the second leg of their postseason journey. The Zips men and women will next head to the NCAA Great Lakes Regional in Madison, Wis., on Nov. 9.
