Nov. 2, 2008

ANN ARBOR, MICH. - The Illinois men's cross country team competed at the Big Ten Championships on Sunday at the University of Michigan Golf Course, finishing ninth. Junior Jeremy Stevens led the Illini by placing 38th as an individual.

Wisconsin won its 10th consecutive team title, scoring 40 points and placing three runners in the top 10, while host Michigan was second with 57 points. Minnesota's Hassan Mead won the individual title with an 8K time of 24:26. The Illini totaled 252 points in taking ninth.

"We are obviously disappointed with taking ninth place in the Big Ten," cross country coach Wendel McRaven said. "We have too many quality runners on the sideline right now, which puts us in a tough position. We have to all work hard to keep guys healthy so we can improve on our finish in the future. With our top runners competing, we are much better than a ninth-place team."

Stevens was the 38th scorer and the top Illini, running a time of 25:32. Freshmen Colin and Hunter Mickow finished 50th and 51st, running within four tenths of a second of each with times of 25:44.1 and 25:44.5, respectively. Other Illinois runners scoring team points were junior Garrett Weaver (56th, 25:48) and freshman Nathan Troester (57th, 25:59).

In total, five freshmen competed for the Orange and Blue, in an Illini lineup that has been plagued with injuries all season.

The Illini will next compete at the NCAA Midwest Regional Championships on Nov. 15 in Stillwater, Okla.

Big Ten Championships Team Results
1. Wisconsin 40
2. Michigan 57
3. Minnesota 60
4. Penn State 133
5. Indiana 135
6. Michigan State 138
7. Iowa 169
8. Ohio State 209
9. ILLINOIS 252
10. Purdue 296

Illinois Individual Results
38. Jeremy Stevens 25:32
50. Colin Mickow 25:44.1
51. Hunter Mickow 25:44.5
56. Garrett Weaver 25:58
57. Nathan Troester 25:59
60. Kyle Engnell 26:09
70. Mike Murray 27:15
85. Nathan Bohne 27:18