Jess Clakr Sept. 21, 2007

Teams turn in season-best times

DAVENPORT— The Central College men’s and women’s cross country teams turned in several season-best times at the Brissman-Lundeen Invitational, hosted by Augustana College (Ill.) at Credit Island.

The women’s squad placed ninth in a 26-team field while the men took 18th out of 31 teams.

The Wis.-Parkside took first in the women’s field with 70 points. Iowa Conference rival Simpson was third with 156, while Central had 231.

Pacing the women in 41st place, Hannah Anderson (junior, Goodell, Garner-Hayfield) ran a 6,000 meter season-best time of 24:05. The remaining Central women finished within a minute of Anderson. Amy Ledvina (sophomore, Toledo, South Tama) was 42nd (24:08), Amber Meyer (sophomore, Essex, Shenandoah) was 44th (24:10), Jess Clark (junior, Port Byron, Ill.) was 55th (24:22), and Jenni Hufford (sophomore, Polk City, Ankeny) was 73rd (24:46). Ledvina, Clark, and Hufford also recorded season-best 6,000-meter times in the meet which 354 runners.

Augustana (Ill.) won the men’s title for the fifth consecutive year with 43 points. League rival Loras placed fifth with 195 while Central finished with 522.

All of Central’s counters recorded season-best 8,000-meter times. Chase Ungs (senior, Ames,

Gilbert) took 42nd in a time of 27:20, Tyler Husak (junior, Montour, South Tama) was 141st (29:00), Jaron Byrum (junior, Mount Union, New London) was 151st (29:04), Cory Fitzsimmons (sophomore, Pella) was 158th (29:10), and Derek Townsend (junior, Perry) was 237th (30:01). 

The Dutch take next weekend off and are back in action at the Dan Huston Invitational at Waverly Oct. 6. The Central women were sixth in a 16-team field at Waverly last year. In a split field, the Dutch men were sixth out of 10 teams in the 8,000-meter race and eighth of 12 in a 4,000 meter race.