Falcons Wrap Up Regular Season at Ball State Invitational

MEN'S RESULTS (.html)

WOMEN'S RESULTS (.html)

MUNCIE, Ind. -- The men's and women's cross country teams at Bowling Green State University raced in their third and final regular season meet on Friday (Oct. 14) at the Ball State Invitational.  The meet was held in Muncie, Ind. at the Elks Country Club, which will also be the site of the 2011 Mid-American Conference championship meet.

The men's team competed in an 8,000-meter (8K) race in virtual head-to-head fashion with Kent State.  BGSU fell to the Golden Flashes, who are now ranked 11th in the Great Lakes Region by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), but had several solid performances.

Jason Salyer placed fourth after crossing the finish line in 25:49.7.  He was followed closely by Bowling Green, Ohio native Kevin Budge (26:23.1) and Ryan Harrison (26:43.9).

Falcons' head coach Lou Snelling said, "We continue to see improvement on the men's side witha  majority of the team earning personal record times.  Jason Salyer raced well, staying focused as the race broke up, and he made decisive moves at the end.  Freshman Kevin Budge improved a half-minute from two weeks ago and made better pacing decisions early in the race."

The women's team officially raced with six runners.  That group was led by Alixe Korsnack (24:56.8) and Caitlin Lashbrook (25:09.9).  Several others who are redshirting this season continued to race unattached.  Abby Koch led that group by placing second overall with a time of 22:10.29.  Andrea Alt posted a sub-23-minute time, as well, by completing the 6K in 22:38.55.  That time earned fifth place. 

Also running unattached were Jasmine Redman, Megan Monte, Maria Dahlinghaus, Maria Meredith and Veronica Bruns.

Snelling said, "With the women's team being so young, we gained valuable experience by racing the 6K today.  It was the first 6K for most of the team.  Abby and Andrea continue to exhibit good fitness, taking a nice step from two weeks ago.  Freshman Jasmine Redman raced for the first time since September and placed in the top 15, almost breaking the 23 minute barrier.  The redshirt group will move to the track for a few more fall races while the rest of the team continues on to the MAC Championships."

The Falcons' next event is the MAC Championships.  That meet takes place in Muncie, Ind. on Saturday, Oct. 29th.  The final race of the season is two weeks beyond the MAC meet, at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional in Toledo, Ohio.  That meet is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 12th.