Saturday, November 11, 2006

Maryville, Tenn. – At the NCAA South Regional, both of Belmont’s cross country teams posted top-10 finishes and BU sophomore Kipkosgei Magut may have qualified for the NCAA Championships as an individual at the meet held Saturday in Maryville, Tennessee.

The Belmont men finished an impressive seventh in Saturday’s race. They had two runners finish among the top-15 and saw all five scoring runners place in the top-50. Sophomore Kipkosgei Magut finished fifth with a 10K time of 31:37. That high finish may earn the Kenyan native a berth in the NCAA Championships later this month as an individual. A final decision will come Sunday night when the championship field is announced. Teammate and senior Ryan Snellen closed out his career with a 13th place finish. Both individuals were named All-South for their performance. BU’s other three scoring runners were junior Kevin Stone in 42nd, sophomore Caleb Swartz in 43rd, and freshman and Lebanon HS product Clay Hannah in 47th.

The BU women placed ninth overall, beating out city rival Vanderbilt, who placed 10th. It was the fifth time in seven years that BU had finished in the top-10 at the Regional meet. The Bruins had three runners finish among the top-50. They were led by junior Lauren Williams who finished 22nd. Williams just barely missed qualifying for the NCAA Championships with that finish. However, the Nashville native was named All-South for her performance on Saturday. Senior and Brentwood native Whitney Thurman placed 45th, while junior Elizabeth Smothers finished in 49th. Belmont’s other two scoring runners were freshman Brittany Thune in 62nd place and junior Megan Saunders in 90th place.

This meet ends the season for the Belmont cross country teams. However, Kipkosgei Magut will find out Sunday night if he has earned a berth to the NCAA Championships. Please monitor Bruins Online at www.belmont.edu/athletics for updates on Magut’s status.