North Carolina State University Athletics
Nationally-Ranked Cross Country Squads Head to Pre-NCAA Meet
10/16/2003 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Oct. 16, 2003
NC State will head to the the midwest on for the Pre-NCAA meet, held in Waterloo, Iowa on Saturday. The day will feature six races and a number of the nation's top teams. The women's squad enters the race ranked as the No. 6 team in the FinishLynx/NCAA DI Poll and the men rank at No. 22 in the Mondo/NCAA DI Poll. Both squad will run in the Gold heats with the men's race kicking off at 11:40 a.m., and the women's to follow at 12:55 p.m.
The men's Gold race features 11 teams ranked in the top 30 of the nation, and also includes ACC foe Wake Forest. NC State will turn to the experience of Ricky Brookshire, Devin Swann and Andy Smith to lead the squad. Allen Bader will race in his third of the season. The squad will welcome the freshmen talents of Wesley Smith and Bobby Mack to the lineup as well. The squad's seventh runner has not yet been decided upon.
Smith and Mack crack into the top group after putting up solid performances at the Great American Championships. The pair ran in the open group and finished first and third in the race with times that would have scored for the "A" team.
The women's Gold race also includes some of the nation's top talent, including No. 2 Stanford. A total of 10 ranked teams will compete, as well as three conference opponents in Florida State, Maryland and Wake Forest, all of which are also ranked.
The women will lineup without two-time All-American Kristin Price. The team will include seniors Renee Gunning and Lucinda Hull, Josianne Lauber, Julia Lucas, Kristina Roth, Amy Arnold and Sarah Powell. Arnold and Powell are running with the "A" squad for the first time. Arnold is a redshirt freshman, and Powell is a true first-year runner. Arnold and Powell did well at the Great American Championships, giving them a nod to run with the top group this weekend.
The team will also send individuals to compete in the Open races. Megan Coombs, Claudine Hull, Abigail Nelkie, Kara Price and Erin Swain will run for the women, and John Henderson, Kurtis Marlowe, and David Christian or Bryce Ruiz could suit up for the men.
