Troy University Athletics
Trojans Run in Rain in Tuscaloosa
9/19/2009 12:15:00 AM | Cross Country
The Trojans took to the course at the University of Alabama in the 21st Crimson Classic on Friday night, and Troy head coach Stephane Hetherington was pleased with the effort.
“For our first race at a real cross country distance everything went as expected,” he said. “We came out strong for the first two-thirds of the race, and struggled late. Overall I was very pleased with the effort of both teams tonight. Luckily, the guy's race finished up right as the rains got here so we were able to get to the vans without getting too wet.”
On the men's side, the Trojans finished 11th overall in the race, finishing just behind SEC foe LSU. The host team, Alabama, claimed the top spot overall in the race, while the Crimson Tide's Tyson David won the 8K race in a time of 24:25.90.
Meanwhile, Denzel Ramirez finished 21st overall in the individual race for the Trojans - finishing with a time of 26:00.70. Jeremy Moujoodi was the next Trojan to cross the line Friday night, finishing 29th overall with a time of 26:19.60. Drew Horner was the only other Trojan runner to finish in the top 50, finishing 37th overall with a time of 26:37.10.
“On the guy's side almost everyone followed our plan that we set forth,” Hetherington said. “Using the plan worked for us today. We had a lot of personal bests set on the course today. The only thing we were lacking was that killer instinct we need in races. Some of the guys felt like they had something left after the race, and that is something we will work on as the year goes on to get ready for the important races at the end of the season.”
On the women's side, the Trojans' Sylvia Chirchir was the first runner from the institution to cross the line as she finished 19th overall with a time of 18:41.90. She was followed by Kelly Harrington in 47th place with a time of 19:47.70 and freshman Morgan Paulson in 75th place with a time of 20:51.80.
“We had a number of personal bests on the course today on the girl's side,” he said. “Kelly [Harrington] ran very well, setting a new personal best which was one of her goals today. Anastasia Limo had a tough day on the course, but she was able to work through that. She really earned the toughest runner of the day award for us, and really helped our team with her performance.”
This will not be the only time that the Trojans will run the course, with the regionals scheduled in November.
“The course is deceptively hilly,” Hetherington said. “Everyone I talked to seemed to agree that this course takes a toll on you while you are running. It is a minute slower than your average cross country course.”
The Trojans are off until October 3 when they travel to the Gulf Coast Stampede in Pensacola.
