Fricke, Punyua Earn All-Region
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. - Julie Fricke finished 13th individually to earn all-region status Saturday and lead the University of Maryland women's cross country team to ninth place at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships hosted by UMES.
On the men's side, freshman Kikanae Punyua also earned a likely all-region honor by finishing 20th, also leading the Terrapins to ninth place in the team standings.
Fricke, a junior from Newtown, Pa., was in a battle for a possible individual berth to the NCAA National Championships. She covered the 6-kilometer course in 22:06.9.
Four athletes not on an advancing team earn invitations to run at nationals. Villanova and Georgetown tied for first place in the team standings, earning automatic berths. West Virginia, which finished third as a team, is expected to get an at-large team invitation on Sunday.
If those results hold up, Fricke will be the fifth finisher not on an advancing team. The top 25 individual finishers are expected to earn all-region status on Monday from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
Maryland scored 312 points on the women's side. Second-ranked Villanova and No. 7 Georgetown had 57 points to tie for the team lead, with 13th-ranked West Virginia in third with 64 points.
Senior Ashley Cromartie went 22:58.2 to finish 34th for the Terrapins, with freshman Maya Hicks in 51st at 23:18.3.Bridget Nolan was 98th at 24:20.5, with Halsey Sinclair in the final scoring position at 121st in a 24:46.7 clocking.
Caitlin Orr (152nd, 25:21.7), Maeve McCoy (154th, 25:31.5) also ran for the Maryland women.
|
|
 |
Sheila Reid of Villanova won the individual title in 21:32.7, with Emily Infeld of Georgetown second in 21:34.0.
Punyua was the second freshman to the line in the field, covering the men's 10K course in 31:07.3. The Terrapin freshman from Nairobi, Kenya, ended up as Maryland's No. 1 runner in each of his events this season.
Junior Tyler Stump was the second Terrapin across the line, finishing 47th overall in 31:49.1. Freshman Nick Regan was 66th in 32:14.2, with Noam Neeman just behind in 32:16.2.Craig Morgan was Maryland's final scorer, placing 76th in 32:29.0.
Alex Willett (103rd, 33:10.0) and Theo Dorsman (114th, 33:22.1) also ran for the Terrapins.
The Terrapins finished with 261 points and in ninth in the 25-team field.
Georgetown, ranked 23rd nationally, scored an upset to win the men's team title with 47 points, ahead of 13th-ranked Villanova (63) and ninth-ranked Princeton (90).
Donn Cabral of Princeton finished in 30:30.3 to win the individual title, ahead of Villanova's Ryan Sheridan, who ran 30:38.6.