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Women's Cross Country, Track & Field
No. 10 Illini Place Third at Wisconsin Inter-Regional
Oct. 3, 2009
WXC Wisconsin Inter-Regional Complete Results
MADISON, Wis. - The No. 10-ranked Illinois women's cross country team finished third at the Wisconsin Inter-Regional on Saturday, with a team score of 95 points. The loaded field included six ranked squads amoung the 12 teams competing. Finishing first for the Orange and Blue and second overall was senior standout Angela Bizzarri, who ran the 5K race with a time of 17:04. "We ran well today and had a lot of personal bests out there," women's cross country coach Jeremy Rasmussen said. "The course was a lot of a lot tougher than I originally thought, so to have a lot of the girls get personal bests is definitely encouraging. I think this race helps our confidence going into Pre-Nationals, because we know we are able to go out there and run well. It also helps us to have a big race under our belt. Going into Pre-Nationals, we are definitely excited. We still have to get a few girls back and put a few more pieces of the puzzle together. We are good right now, but we have the opportunity to be really good." The race also marked the season debut of sophomore Kristin Sutherland. Sutherland ran a personal-best 5K time of 17:22 and also placed second for the Illini and sixth overall. Following Sutherland was senior Elizabeth Boyle (11), junior Chantelle Groenewoud (24), and junior Ashley Thompson (52). Both Boyle and Thompson set personal-best 5K times at the meet. "Kristin went out and ran really well. She got to the front of the pack right away and never backed off," Rasmussen said. "She is continuing to work on some things and develop her strength, but she had a great race today. For Angela to come out in the beginning stages of her training and run the way she did shows a lot about the kind of contributor she is to the team." No. 29-ranked Duke placed first overall with a combined team score of 78 points. Junior Cecily Lemmon of Brigham Young was the individual champion of the event, running the race with a time of 17:01, just three seconds better than Bizzarri. The Illini have a weekend off before splitting up and competing at the Bradley Classic in Peoria, Ill., on Friday, Oct. 16 at 4:15 p.m. CT and the Pre-Nationals Invitational in Terre Haute, Ind., on Saturday, Oct. 17. at 11:00 a.m. CT. Illinois Results Team Results (Top Five)
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