Michigan
NCAA Pre-Nationals
Woods Paces Michigan to Sixth at NCAA Pre-Nationals
10/15/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- Sophomore Mike Woods (Ottawa, Ontario/Hillcrest HS) shaved 23 seconds from his 8,000-meter personal best to lead the No. 19-ranked University of Michigan men's cross country team to sixth place (219 points) in the White race at the NCAA Pre-Nationals on Saturday (Oct. 15) at Indiana State's LaVern Gibson Championship Course. Woods' performance was indictative of the overall Wolverines effort in the NCAA meet preview as the entire U-M top five boasted personal-best times for the second consecutive race.
| | Mike Woods was the first Wolverine across the line for the third consecutive meet. |
Senior/junior Andrew Ellerton (Sudbury, Ontario/Confederation HS) registered his best collegiate cross country performance as the Wolverines' second man across the finish line, clocking of 24:34.1, eight seconds better than his previous best time. After falling back off the pace in the middle stages of the race, Ellerton made his way back through the field with 2,000 meters remaning to earn the 39th overall spot.
Sophomore/freshman Victor Gras (Belmont, Mass./Belmont HS) and fifth-year senior Rondell Ruff (Detroit, Mich./Henry Ford HS) crossed the line together in the 47th and 49th positions, respectively. Gras clocked 24:41.9 to earn a 20-second personal best, while Ruff shaved 19 seconds from his previous mark, registering a time of 24:42.2. Rounding out Michigan's top five was freshman Lex Williams (Ann Arbor, Mich./Dexter HS), who scored for the first time in his collegiate career with a time of 24:52.8 in 73rd place. His performance knocked 13 seconds from his previous best.
The Wolverines will compete in their final tune-up prior to the postseason next Friday (Oct. 21) at the EMU Classic in Ann Arbor. The 8,000-meter race is slated for a 4 p.m. start at Buhr Park.
Top 10 Teams (White Division)
1. Colorado 70 2. Notre Dame 96 3. Florida 152 4. Iowa 193 5. Portland 218 6. MICHIGAN 219 William & Mary 219 8. Washington 236 9. Iona 239 10. Air Force 353
Top 15 Individuals (White Division)
1. Josh McDougal, Liberty 23:12.6 2. Richard Kiplagat, Iona 23:32.7 3. Bret Schoolmeester, Colorado 23:43.7 4. Kurt Benniger, Notre Dame 23:48.5 5. Henok Lechebo, Florida 23:50.0 6. Billy Nelson, Colorado 23:52.3 7. Shadrack Songok, Texas A&M-CC 23:54.3 8. Christo Landry, Williamn & Mary 23:54.7 9. Sean O'Donnell, Notre Dame 23:54.9 10. Trevor Ball, Utah State 23:56.1 11. MIKE WOODS, U-M 23:58.1 12. Casey Burchill, Arizona State 24:00.9 13. Josh Glaab, Colorado State 24:01.6 14. Tim Moore, Notre Dame 24:04.2 15. Stephen Pifer, Colorado 24:09.4
Other Michigan Individuals (White Division)
39. Andrew Ellerton 24:34.1 47. Victor Gras 24:41.9 49. Rondell Ruff 24:42.2 73. Lex Williams 24:52.8 80. Andrew Bauer 24:58.4 101. Justin Switzer 25:13.2
Michigan Finishes (Men's Open 8K Division)
14. Seth Thibodeau 25:11.7 15. Ethan Brown 25:18.1 42. James Reichardt 25:51.9 64. Tony Nalli 26:14.4
Q U O T E S
Sophomore Mike Woods
On his race today ... "I decided to go with the leaders, and we got out really fast through the first 1K and first mile. I kept moving up. I was running in about fourth or fifth for most of the race. The leaders got a gap on my group, and I bridged that gap, running about 14:55 at 5K. I fell back a bit; I got passed with 2,000 meters to go by bunch of guys. I'm really happy about my performance. I ran a big PR today and placed well. I feel like this was my first breakthrough race in cross country."
On his improvement this season ... "Once you reach that high level, you really want to keep moving up to get to that next level. I made a big step today, but I want to stay consistent and continue to improve leading into the NCAA meet."
On the preview of the NCAA meet ... "This is a great course when the weather's nice. Last year at the NCAA meet, it was horrible -- just really muddy and sloppy. It was a lot drier today and a lot more manicured. If they can keep it like this for nationals, I think it will be to our advantage. If it can stay dry, it will be really fast, and our team can do well moving up together. I think we ran great today, but I know we can still do better."
Senior/Junior Andrew Ellerton
On the team performance ... "We're happy with the result today. We're running pretty well as a team right now, but there's definitely room for improvement. We haven't quite put five together yet. We're so deep that someone can have a bad day and there is someone to step up and fill that spot. Hopefully, we can continue to progress and run to our potential over the next month and prepare for NCAAs."
On his personal finish ... "I'm content with it; I can't complain. I felt pretty good over the last two miles; I was passing a lot of guys. I got around about 15 guys in the last 400 meters. I've been running pretty well for me this season. I've been knocking off time each race. I think there's still room for improvement, and I think I can be there by nationals."
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
