Nov. 10, 2007
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - UCF cross country capped off its season Saturday at the NCAA South Region Championships at the University of Florida's Mark Bostick Golf Course in Gainesville. The men secured 13th place in the 10K race and the women locked up 15th in the 6K event.
"We had a great showing today," said head cross country and track and field coach Caryl Smith Gilbert. "I thought the effort given on the men's and women's sides was outstanding. Any time an athlete gives 100 percent, I am always satisfied with the outcome. Now we can carry this momentum into the indoor and outdoor track season."
Last month, the men were ranked at No. 15 in the region, while the women also were at No. 15 earlier this year.
The men were the first to hit the course when they began their 10K event at 10 a.m. Senior Paul Fitzpatrick paced the Knights with a 63rd-place showing and a time of 33:09.45. Sophomore Daniel Conn was right behind him in 66th thanks to a time of 33:16.83, and classmate Richard Bonilla followed in 68th by clocking in at 33:19.02. Also competing for the Black and Gold, senior Matt Clements recorded a time of 34:32.86 to notch 96th, and freshman Miles Harris came in at No. 117 by running the 10K in 36:07.03.
Following the men's race, the women took off on their 6K journey at 11 a.m. Junior Jamie Rzepecki led all Knights by placing 54th with a time of 22:43.55. Senior Karen Kozub tallied 64th by completing the course in 23:14.22, and fellow senior Elizabeth Miller earned 74th with a mark of 23:28.99. Junior Kelly McNeill and sophomore Shannon Kelly also finished in the top 100, with McNeill notching 86th with a time of 23:57.64 and Kelly posting 93rd with a 24:04.19 effort. Sophomore Erica Weitz (114th, 24:41.52) and junior Shantile Blackburn (123rd, 25:12.49) finished the difficult event for the Knights as well.
Alabama and Florida State finished first and second, respectively, on the men's side to automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships on Nov. 19 in Terre Haute, Ind. Meanwhile, Florida State and Georgia received the automatic bids for the women as the Seminoles placed first and the Bulldogs earned second.
Individually, Auburn's Felix Kibioywo notched the men's crown and Florida State's Susan Kuijken took home the women's title. The top four student-athletes in each race that are not part of the top two teams all received automatic bids to the NCAA Championships.
The UCF women's track and field indoor season will begin at the Virginia Tech Invitational Jan. 11-12.
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