TERRE HAUTE, IN - In her first season as a varsity runner with Toledo, sophomore Ari Fisher (Lebanon, OH) came in 43rd at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, just three spots out of earning All-American honors today at the La Vern Gibson Championship Course at Indiana State University.

Fisher's performance was the second-best by a Rocket runner at the national meet (Brianna Shook, 24th, 2002). She completed the 6K course in a time of 20:47.0, which left her less than two seconds out of the top-40 and All-American status.

"In high school, Ari never even made it to the state tournament, and now she is legitimately one of the top runners in the country," head coach Kevin Hadsell said. "I'm very proud of her, and I know that she is able to accomplish a lot more than she already has. Now, our next goal is to qualify the team to compete here in 2010."

Amongst runners from the Great Lakes region, Fisher had the third-best time, and she bested region champion Emily MacLeod of Michigan State in the process. Fisher also had the best showing of the three MAC runners who qualified and was the seventh-fastest individual qualifier out of the 38 who ran.

Angela Bizzarri, a senior from Illinois, won the individual title in 19:46.8.

On the year, Fisher was UT's top finisher in each of the five team events she competed in. She won individual titles in the dual meet against Bowling Green as well as in the eight-team Colonial Inter-Regional Challenge, helping lead the Rockets to team victories in both events. She also won the MAC Championship to guide Toledo to a runner-up finish, and qualified for the NCAA Championships with her ninth-place finish at the Great Lakes Regional.

Contact: Scott Miles
scott.miles@utoledo.edu