Ball State University Athletics
Cross Country Heads to Canton for MAC Championship
October 30, 2015 | Cross Country
2015 MAC Championship Website | Live Results | Women's 6K Course Map
MUNCIE, Ind. - - Months of preparation culminate Saturday at Noon for the Ball State cross country team, when it approaches the starting line for the 2015 Mid-American Conference Championship hosted by Akron at the Canton GlenOak Community Park in Canton, Ohio.
The 6K meet will feature all 12 league schools, with Toledo looking to defend its title from last season's race held at Central Michigan's Pleasant Hills Golf Course. Overall, the Rockets have won four of the last five MAC Cross Country Championships, with Miami earning the other in 2013.
“The most important thing this weekend is we go out there and compete,” first-year Ball State distance coach Raynee DeGrio said. “We want to put ourselves in a position to be successful. Individually, we have a good opportunity to do well Saturday. Jordan Timmons has had a couple good weeks, and definitely showed in Louisville she is ready to take the next step. Rachel Bales is coming around after illness the past few weeks and Ericka Rinehart has been consistent all season. We are excited to put the individual pieces together, and hopefully, that results in a good team score. As a team, we want to have a good performance and compete in the last half of the race. That is what is going to lead us to be successful.”
Eastern Michigan enters the meet as the top-ranked team in the conference, holding the eighth slot in the Great Lakes Region in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Regional Rankings. Bowling Green and Central Michigan round out the top 10 in the region, at ninth and 10th, respectively. Also ranking in the top 15 are Ohio (11th), Western Michigan (13th) and Miami (14th).
In Ball State's lone 6K race during the 2015 regular season, four of Ball State's seven runners turned in career-best efforts in the Women's 6K Black Race at the Pre-Nationals meet at E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Ky. (Oct. 17). Leading the Cardinals to the finish line, and knocking 30 seconds off her previous career-fast 6K time, was junior Jordan Timmons (Bargersville, Ind./Center Grove) who placed 158th among scored runners in 22:56.9.
Ball State's freshman duo of Hannah Privette (New Knoxville, Ohio/New Knoxville) and Rachel Bales (West Lafayette, Ind./West Lafayette) followed Timmons to the finish line at the Pre-Nationals meet, also logging career-best 6K times of 23:37.9 and 23:50.2, respectively. Rounding out Ball State's top performers was sophomore transfer Kitty Taylor (Newburgh, Ind./Castle/St. Mary-of-the-Woods College) who finished as the Cardinals' fourth-best runner with a career-fast effort of 23:58.5.
Entering the meet, three different runners have led the Cardinals to the finish line this season. Sophomore Jessica Bryzek (Brownsburg, Ind./Indiana Academy) was Ball State's top runner at the season-opening Butler Open (Sept. 5), while Bales led the Cardinals to the line at both the Indiana Intercollegiates (Sept. 18) and the Greater Louisville Classic (Oct. 3). Timmons was Ball State's top performer at the Pre-National meet.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State cross country, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateTFXC and @CoachE_BSU.
Ball State Season / Career Fast Times
|
Runner |
2015 Top 5K Times () or * = career best |
2015 Top 6K Time () or * = career best |
|
19:16.3* on 9/18/15 |
23:50.2* on 10/17/15 |
|
|
19:31.3 on 10/3/15 (18:58.35 on 9/13/13) |
22:56.9* on 10/17/15 |
|
|
19:33.97 on 10/3/15 (19:09.68 on 9/13/13) |
23:59.1 on 10/17/15 (23:26 on 11/1/14) |
|
|
19:37.73 on 10/3/15 (19:30.60 on 10/3/14) |
24:34.1 on 10/17/15 (24:33.12 on 9/5/14) |
|
|
19:55.53* on 10/3/15 |
23:58.5* on 10/17/15 |
|
|
19:59.55 on 10/3/15 (19:36.83 on 9/13/14) |
25:09.3 on 10/17/15 (23:49 on 11/1/14) |
|
|
20:47.20 on 10/3/15 (20:23.5 on 10/3/14) |
N/A (25:44.01 on 9/5/14) |
|
|
21:56.8* on 9/18/15 |
23:37.9* on 10/17/15 |
|
|
22:13.8* on 9/5/15 |
N/A (29:48.27 on 9/7/13) |
|
|
N/A (19:12.4 on 10/3/14) |
N/A (23:42 on 11/1/14) |
|
|
N/A |
N/A |
- BallStateSports.com -
