Central Michigan University Athletics
Michigan Intercollegiates on Tap for Men's Cross Country
10/3/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
MOUNT PLEASANT -- Central Michigan University’s men’s cross country team will split up this weekend and run two different distances at the Michigan Intercollegiate Championships hosted by Oakland University.
A 4K and an 8K will be held this Friday, Oct. 5 at Katke-Cousins Golf Course. Action begins at 3:30 p.m. Collegiate teams of all divisions will be competing in the event.
“The main purpose of this weekend is to get a race in for as many of our guys as we can,” coach Craig Fuller said. “Matt Loiselle and Jacob Korir are still not competing yet, but hopefully they will be able to get out this week and get some running in. They are building up still and we are shooting to get them back for the Great American Cross Country Festival in Alabama next weekend.”
With all the injuries this season, Fuller is looking to use the next two meets to determine his lineup of nine runners for the Mid-American Conference Championships which CMU hosts on Oct. 27.
“This weekend will help determine a lot of that since we will be taking nine to Alabama and we’d like for it to be the same nine who will run at the MACs,” he said.
The 4K race will be the shortest of the season for CMU and those who run it.
“It will be different for those guys since a 4K is almost a sprint for a cross country runner,” Fuller said. “The thing I look forward to is that we are going to get a lot of people experience this weekend and that will be big for us for the future.”
CMU has been idle since placing fourth of 17 teams at the Western International hosted by Western Ontario on Sept. 22. Eastern Michigan won the meet followed by Bucknell, Queen’s, CMU, Western Ontario and others.
Freshman Sammy Kiprotich made his Chippewa debut by placing sixth in the 10K with a time of 32:25.
“Sammy ran a good race,” Fuller said. “It was his first 10K race ever. I had everyone start slow and it was a bad race plan. We were too far behind and had to try and pass too many people. It was two 5K loops and Sammy really picked it up on the second half.”
Riak Mabil was 17th with a time of 32:59 and Andrew Manning placed 24th in 33:18. Also scoring were Cory Arnold in 32nd (33:34) and Adam Richmond in 44th (33:56).
Chippewas Ranked Regionally: CMU is ranked 15th in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Great Lakes Regional poll. Wisconsin is ranked No. 1 regionally and tied for second nationally. Eastern Michigan is fourth regionally followed by fellow MAC foes Miami (9th) and Kent State (14th).
