NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. – The Franciscan University of Steubenville men's and women's cross country teams started the season out strong by capturing third and second place at Westminster College's Fisher Invitational on Saturday. Most notable were the performances of Bill Jones and Teresa Evans, each earning first place in the overall individual standings.
Although Jones finished the 8-kilometer run in 25:46 minutes, his personal best by 2 seconds, he had to overcome an unexpected hurdle as he and two other runners were forced to run a longer distance. The 4-wheeler leading the runners through the course took a wrong turn during the race, costing each runner precious time and energy. Despite that, Jones completed the race 46 seconds before second place finisher Garrett Cichowitz of Grove City College, who in 2009 qualified second for nationals.
Bill Jones had strong support from his teammates, as Kevin LeRoy finished sixth with a time of 26:56, followed by a tenth place finish for Joey Schlueter. Jack Kaiser and Jason Liuzzi both scored for the Barons with times of 28:48 and 29:09 respectively. The Barons finished with a score of 79 points.
"This was the best finish ever for the men today," said head coach Dan Kuebler. "Bill Jones's race was very strong, but our depth is something that we have never had before. Freshmen Joey Schlueter and Jason Liuzzi both had excellent races even though it was their first time competing on the collegiate level. I think our depth will end up playing an important role this season."
The Lady Barons also had a very strong race, placing four runners in the top six places with a total score of 36 points. Theresa Evans led with a strong first place finish in the 6-kilometer run with a time of 23:14, and Katherine Manion followed in fourth place with a 23:30 minute finish. Anna Scarnecchia ran for a fifth place finish in 23:54, followed closely by Nicole Krajewski in 24:00 minutes. Lexie Mathis also scored for the Lady Barons by completing the race in 25:32 minutes.
Division III school Grove City College took the team victory in both races, scoring 50 points for the men and 32 points for the women.
"This is the best start to any season we have had so far. It is very encouraging," said Kuebler. "We have room to improve, but our performance today shows how competitive we can be this season."
The Barons will compete next at the National Catholic Championship at the University of Notre Dame on Friday, September 17.
