Coming off impressive victories at the Fordham Invitational two weeks ago, Duke's men's and women's cross-country teams again ran well at the Great American Cross Country Festival, held in Charlotte this past weekend.
In its most competitive races of this young season, the men's team finished third behind nationally ranked Michigan and N.C. State, and the women's squad posted a strong fifth-place finish.
The clear highlight of the men's race was the performance of senior captain Sean Kelly. Finishing fourth overall with a time of 24:12.1, the team leader ran the best race of his career and established himself as a legitimate All-America threat. Kelly stayed with some of the very best runners in the country, such as Michigan's Alan Webb, and with 200 meters to go still had a shot at victory.
"This race was a real improvement for Sean," coach Norm Ogilvie said. "Even though he does not at this point have the finishing speed of the other top runners, he looked more under control. He had an All-American-type race, and really proved that he is ready to perform at that level."
The balance of the team showed in this race, as Kelly's effort was followed up by strong performances from underclassmen. Freshman Nick Schneider, the U.S. high school champion in the mile, finished 19th overall, with a time of 24:58.4.
"I felt I ran well," Schneider said. "But since this was my first competitive 8K, there are things I can improve upon and do differently next time."
Rounding out the men's squad were freshmen Robert Smitson (25th, 25:12.2), sophomore Chris Williams (27th, 25:13.8), and freshman Michael Hatch (34th, 25:23.1). With a young nucleus and strong leadership from Kelly, Ogilvie feels that after next week's extremely competitive Griak Invitational, Duke should be able to move into the top 25 in the country.
Youth was also the theme for Duke's women's cross-country team. With its best runner, junior Sheela Agrawal, out with a foot injury, and its team afflicted by the tragedy of Sept. 11, four freshmen and a sophomore stepped up to carry Duke against a field that included six nationally-ranked teams.
The freshman duo of Paris Edwards (17:29.2) and Paige Miller (17:29.5) finished the 5K race 10th and 11th, respectively, as the top two American freshmen. Running together throughout the race, the pair found familiarity and confidence in each other, amid the pressure of their most competitive collegiate race ever.
"It was great to work with my teammates in the race," Edwards said. "That will help us do well later on, and get us to Nationals."
Meanwhile, Miller emphasized that the Blue Devils' season is just beginning.
"This race was to see where we were this early in the season, so we know what we have to do to get where we want to be later on," she said.
Coach Jan Samuelson-Ogilvie also stressed that the season is only just now getting going.
"Until next week, meets do not even count toward NCAA qualifying, and so many schools do not run all of their people," Samuelson-Ogilvie said. "Still, this was the toughest race I have seen since I became associated with Duke."
Despite the tough field, Duke's young runners came through. Following Edwards and Miller, freshman Meaghan Leon (31st, 18:03.6), sophomore Allison Hofmann (38th, 18:11.5) and freshman Phebe Ko (53rd, 18:26.6) completed the team's strong finish. Currently ranked 25th nationally, the women's team handily beat ACC foe and 21st-ranked Wake Forest at this meet, and like the men's team, is looking forward to the Griak Invitational where it can prove itself as even better than its ranking.
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