Cincy places eighth, ninth

The University of Cincinnati men’s and women’s cross country teams finished in eighth and ninth place, respectively, at the 2009 Big East Conference Championships Saturday, Oct. 31, in Kenosha, Wis.

Sophomore Eric Finan led the way for the men with a 24th place finish and a time of 25:46 in the 8,000 meter race. This was the second year in a row Finan led the Cats at the Big East Championships.

“(Finan) is an outstanding runner,” head coach Bill Schnier said. “He is a much better runner than last year, but had hopes of doing better this year.”

As a freshman last year, Finan finished with a time of 25:28 at the championships.

Running second for the Bearcats was junior David Barry who finished in 41st place with a time of 26:19.

Freshman Corey Stoll finished with his best team time as a Bearcat, 27:18, good enough for a 57th place finish.

Fellow freshmen Oliver Book and Chase Beckmann rounded out the scoring by finishing one second apart with times of 27:33 and 27:34, finishing 63rd and 65th, respectively.

“The heart and soul of this team at the Big East Championship were our three freshmen,” Schnier said. “Not only have they run like veterans, but they have conducted their lives accordingly.”

The men’s team finished with 250 total points, 195 behind Syracuse University who took home the title.

“We did pretty well,” Schnier said. “Better than we were expected to do. Eighth and ninth place is not what we strive for, but that’s where we were.”

Senior Jocelyn McCauley set the pace for the women’s team clocking in at 22:25 placing her in 34th.

Senior Tamara Masters was next to cross the line for the Bearcats, finishing in 46th place with a time of 22:50. Junior Lilian Jelimo crossed the line four seconds behind her teammate and finished in 48th place.

“In reality you run best with people you know,” Schnier said. “If you see two or three of your teammates it helps you realize your running pace and it’s very uplifting.”

Schnier said he has been working on getting the top-3 runners to run together and help each other out.

Juniors Michele McKenney and Katie Lewnard rounded out the scoring for the Cats.

McKenney finished in 63rd place with a time of 23:36, and Lewnard crossed the line in 24:41 placing her in 81st.

Villanova took the overall title for the women.

The team will continue to train in preparation for the NCAA Great Lakes Regional in
Bloomington, Ind., Saturday, Nov. 14.