Michigan
Big Ten Championships
Michigan Finishes Fifth at Big Ten Championships
10/28/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Event Recap| Photos
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The 10th-ranked University of Michigan men's cross country team finished fifth at the Big Ten Championships on Sunday (Oct. 28), scoring four runners in the top 30 at the Ohio State Golf Course. Wisconsin, which is ranked No. 6 in the country, won the team title for the ninth consecutive year.
Freshman Craig Forys (Howell, N.J./Colts Neck) crossed the finish line first for the Wolverines, placing seventh overall -- in his collegiate debut -- with a time of 23:56.77. Forys' seventh-place finish was good for an All-Big Ten first team citation. Junior/sophomore Sean McNamara (Elmhurst, Ill./York HS) followed shortly behind, capturing 16th place (24:15.23).
Other Wolverine scorers included junior/sophomore Brandon Fellows (Mercer Island, Wash./Mercer Island), who took 23rd with a time of 24:29.03; junior John Black (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Brother Rice), who placed 26th with a mark of 24:38.18; and sophomore/freshman Ciaran O'Lionaird (Cork, Ireland/De La Salle HS), who took 36th with a time of 24:53.05.
Last year, junior Lex Williams (Ann Arbor, Mich./Dexter) and senior Mike Woods (Ottawa, Ontario/Hillcrest) led the Wolverines to second place, finishing sixth and eighth, respectively, to earn first and second team All-Big Ten citations.
This year was a different story, as Williams finished 42nd (25:01.01) after he suffered from numerous recent illnesses. Woods began the day as Michigan's lead runner and was in third-place at the 5,000-meter mark, but soon after Woods suffered a possible season-ending ankle injury. Woods' failed to finish a race for this first time in his career.
The Maize and Blue will continue its postseason run on Saturday (Nov. 10) in Bloomington, Ind., for the 2007 NCAA Regional Championships. The 10,000-meter men's race will begin around 11 a.m. on the IU Cross Country Championship Course.
Team Standings
1. Wisconsin 33 2. Minnesota 65 3. Ohio State 91 4. Indiana 102 5. MICHIGAN 104 6. Illinois 152 7. Michigan State 210 8. Iowa 218 9. Penn State 249 10. Purdue 286
Top 14 Individuals
(All-Big Ten: Top seven finishers are first team, next seven are second team)
1. Matt Withrow, Wisconsin 23:44.37 2. Hassan Mead, Minnesota 23:47.70 3. Trent Hoerr, Illinois 23:49.39 4. Chris Rombough, Minnesota 23:54.48 5. Stuart Eagon, Wisconsin 23:55.35 6. Jeff See, Ohio State 23:56.43 7. CRAIG FORYS, U-M 23:56.77 8. Andrew Lacy, Wisconsin 23:58.10 9. Landon Peacock, Wisconsin 24:01.84 10. Brandon Bethke, Wisconsin 24:03.17 11. John Ealy, Ohio State 24:08.22 12. Forrest Tahdooahnippah, Minnesota 24:11.94 13. Alexander Bailey, Ohio State 24:13.39 14. Cole Hardacre, Indiana 24:13.74
Other Michigan Individuals
16. Sean McNamara 24:15.23 23. Brandon Fellows 24:29.03 26. John Black 24:38.18 36. Ciaran O'Lionaird 24:53.05 42. Lex Williams 25:01.01 44. Victor Gras 25:02.85 73. Justin Switzer 25:57.41
Q U O T E S
Head Coach Ron Warhurst
On finishing fifth ... "It's a big disappointment. We thought we could give the Wisconsin boys a scare and it didn't work. Unfortunately we lost our lead runner, Woods, who had to drop out for a bad ankle when he was in the top three."
On Craig Forys' performance ... "Craig Forys was in his first race and he ran fantastic. Except for Forys' the rest of the team didn't run good -- they just ran average."
Contact: Jeremiah W. Hergott (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
