VALPARAISO, Ind. - The Green Bay men's and women's cross country teams kicked off their 2009 season with back-to-back races. The Phoenix started its season Friday evening at the Crusader Open hosted by Valparaiso followed by the UIC home opener Saturday morning.
At the Crusader Open the Phoenix men finished fourth scoring 113 points in the four team field. Notre Dame won the invitational scoring a perfect 15 points.
Green Bay was led by sophomore Joshua Clark (Gillett, Wis.) who finished 19th in team scoring with a time of 21:05. Freshman Paul Malcore (Luxemburg-Casco, Wis.) was second for the Phoenix finishing 21st overall in team scoring with a time of 21:10. Sophomore Erik Blomsness (Winona, Minn.) ran the 6,000 meter course in a time of 21:16 while Brad Endres (Plymouth, Wis.) and Andrew Geiwitz (Onalaska, Wis.) rounded out the top five for the Phoenix.
The Phoenix women finished fifth in the five team field with 129 points. Notre Dame captured first place honors scoring 26 total team points. Senior Jolene Sell (Menasha, Wis.) paced the way for the Phoenix finishing 15th in team scoring with a time of 19:47. Sell was followed closely by sophomore Annie Bley (Sevastopol, Wis.) with a time of 20:07 who finished 23rd in team scoring. Freshman Areanna Lakowske (Sparta, Wis.) finished the 5K course in 20:30 followed by fellow classmate Megan VanSistine (Pulaski, Wis.) in 21:16. Senior Emily Farrell (Gillett, Wis.) rounded out the top five for Green Bay with a time of 21:49.
It was a quick turn-around for the Phoenix as it headed to Palos Heights, Ill. for the UIC Home Opener on Saturday morning. On the men's side, Malcore finished 14th in the 36-runner field with a time of 22:09 while Clark finished the race in a time of 23:00.
For the women, Sell ran a 6:05/mile pace to place fourth in the 29-runner field in a time of 12:08. Bley finished 6th overall (12:12) while Lakowske was 7th (12:20) for the Phoenix.
In the head-to-head format, the Green Bay men defeated Chicago State (20-41). The Phoenix was defeated by UIC (15-49), Milwaukee (19-37) and Saint Xavier (17-43).
The Phoenix women defeated Chicago State (15-49) and were defeated by Milwaukee (24-35) and UIC (25-30).
Green Bay returns to competition Saturday, Sept. 12 when they travel to DeKalb, Ill. for the Huskie Invitational.
--www.GreenBayPhoenix.com--
