Alabama
Crimson Classic
Alabama Women Finish Second, Men Sixth at Crimson Classic
10/16/2015 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field, Cross Country
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Alabama women finished second behind the Oklahoma State Cowgirls with 71 points while the Crimson Tide men placed sixth with 182 points at the 2015 Crimson Classic on Friday, Oct. 16 at the Harry Pritchett Running Park. The meet was also the program's Power of Pink event to help generate awareness for breast cancer research.
"For the women, this was a tough race," head coach Dan Waters stated. "Rachael (Reddy) was in a position to have another great run, and she had a little bit of an injury that snuck up on her and wasn't able to finish, which obviously hurt our team total. I was very happy with Katelyn Greenleaf. I think that time for her was considerably better than the times she's run on this course over the past three years, so we were obviously happy with that. I'm really happy with a lot of our younger athletes who were competing here for the first time. This is not an easy course, and they showed a lot of poise and toughness as they competed."
Greenleaf, a senior from St. Petersburg, Fla., led the way for the women's squad, as her time of 16:47.41 was good enough for third in the University Women's 5k race. Junior Hannah Waggoner (13th, 17:22.70), senior Meropi Panagiotou (15th, 17:31.87), and senior Rebecca Stover (19th, 17:37.51) also placed inside the top 20.
"It was a really solid race," Greenleaf said. "It was a little off in the beginning because we had to do a re-start. The course was good and the weather was really nice, so it was a good meet. I was really happy with my finish. Last year I ran a low 17, and this year I was able to break into the 16 minute mark."
Junior Allison Gregg placed 21st in a time of 17:39.01 while sophomore Veronica Lyle crossed the finish line 32nd in 17:52.20. Sophomore Alison Ringle also produced a top-50 finish thanks to her time of 18:08.16
The remaining Tide runners to finish were sophomore Caroline Barlow (18:14.57), freshman Kaitlin York (18:15.39), sophomore Jessica Gray (18:17.79), sophomore Emily Edwards (18:20.05), redshirt junior Kendall Howen (18:47.54), sophomore Elizabeth Scott (18:55.27), freshman Abby Rentschler (19:02.85), freshman Sarah Mohan (19:12.00), freshman Brianna Koshy (19:19.43), freshman Calli Coggins (19:29.34) and redshirt junior Ashlin Conroy (19:34.23).
On the men's side, junior Antibahs Kosgei was the runner-up in the 8k race in a time of 24:17.47. Junior Conner Thompson was Alabama's next finisher, crossing the line in 25:04.75.
"I think I did better today than a few weeks ago in Oklahoma," Kosgei stated. "I ran hard through the full race, and that's important for me. Overall as a team I think we improved. I'm excited about the SEC Championships coming up. I'm going to continue to work hard and train hard."
Junior Robbie Farnham-Rose was next to finish for the Tide with a time of 25:45.01. Seniors Justin Ahalt (25:58.52) and Eric Sivill (25:58.99) placed 63rd and 64th, respectively to round out the team's scoring.
The rest of the Alabama runners in field were sophomore Garrett Bull (26:12.20), sophomore Connor Ferrentino (26:13.55), sophomore Andrew Bull (26:15.49), junior Evan Prizy (26:16.18), junior Payton Ballard (26:22.79), senior Parker Deuel (26:42.59) and freshman Chris Buechner (27:09.66).
"It really was a breakthrough for Antibahs (Kosgei)," Waters explained. "This course is not very easy and it's long, so for him to run a low 24 was exciting. I'm really excited that he beat a lot of the SEC competitors. That really helps going into the championship portion of our season two weeks from now at the SEC meet. And Conner (Thompson), that was a true breakthrough for him as well. I think it was about a 45-second personal record on this course."
Oklahoma State swept the team titles, totaling only 27 points on the men's side and 30 on the women's. Rounding out the top five behind the Cowboys was Texas A&M, Lipscomb, Auburn and North Florida. After the Cowgirls and Crimson Tide in the women's standings was Auburn, Ole Miss, and Texas A&M.
"I hope we continue to keep competing like we did this weekend," Waters said. "The SEC meet is going to be anybody's race. Whoever competes the hardest and shows up on that day and pushes all the way through usually has good performances. I hope that what we did today will carry over to that meet."
Next up for both squads is the 2015 SEC Championships on Friday, Oct. 30, hosted by Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas.
Get all the latest information on the team by following @AlabamaTrack on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. General athletic news can also be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and AlabamaAthletics on Facebook.
Crimson Classic
Friday, Oct. 16, 2015
Tuscaloosa, Ala. (Harry Pritchett Running Park)
Men's Results (Top 10)
1. Oklahoma State 27
2. Texas A&M 95
3. Lipscomb 131
4. Auburn 146
5. North Florida 170
6. Alabama 182
7. Texas-Arlington 237
8. Southern Illinois 245
9. Belmont 258
10. LSU 294
Alabama Individual Men's Results (8k)
2. Antibahs Kosgei, Jr. 24:17.47
19. Conner Thompson, Jr. 25:04.75
47. Robbie Farnham-Rose, Jr. 24:45.01
63. Justin Ahalt, Sr. 25:58.52
64. Eric Sivill, Sr. 25:58.59
77. Garrett Bull, So. 26:12.20
79. Connor Ferrentino, So. 26:13.55
81. Andrew Bull, So. 26:15.49
83. Evan Prizy, Jr. 26:16.18
94. Payton Ballard, Jr. 26:22.79
118. Parker Deuel, Sr. 26:42.59
140. Chris Buechner, Fr. 27:09.66
Women's Results (Top 10)
1. Oklahoma State 30
2. Alabama 71
3. Auburn 74
4. Ole Miss 117
5. Texas A&M 166
6. South Alabama 210
7. Lipscomb 253
8. Southern Mississippi 265
9. North Florida 275
10. Texas-Arlington 322
Alabama Individual Women's Results (5k)
3. Katelyn Greenleaf, Sr. 16:47.41
13. Hannah Waggoner, Jr. 17:22.70
15. Meropi Panagiotou, Sr. 17:31.87
19. Rebecca Stover, Sr. 17:37.51
21. Allison Gregg, Jr. 17:39.01
32. Veronica Lyle, So. 17:52.20
48. Alison Ringle, So. 18:08.16
58. Caroline Barlow, So. 18:14.57
62. Kaitlin York, Fr. 18:15.39
65. Jessica Gray, So. 18:17.79
67. Emily Edwards, So. 18:20.05
97. Kendall Howen, RS Jr. 18:47.54
106. Elizabeth Scott, So. 18:55.27
109. Nicole Gardner, Fr. 18:56.73
119. Abby Rentschler, Fr. 19:02.85
131. Sarah Mohan, Fr. 19:12.00
140. Brianna Koshy, Fr. 19:19.43
151. Calli Coggins, Fr. 19:29.34
156. Ashlin Conroy, RS Jr. 19:34.23
DNP Rachael Reddy, RS Fr. DNF
