Women's Cross Country Finishes Fourth of Eight at Belmont Opener
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Belmont women's cross country team placed fourth out of eight teams in competition at the Belmont Opener on Friday Night at Percy Warner Park. Senior Caitlin Standifer (Plano, Texas) led the way for the Bruins, placing ninth in a time of 14:30.77 on the 4K course.
Belmont finished ahead of in-state rivals Tennessee and Austin Peay, as well as Atlantic Sun foe Kennesaw State. The Bruins were just behind Kentucky, who took third with 76 points. Lipscomb was second with 63 points, while Vanderbilt won the team title, placing five runners in the top seven overall, and totaling a score of 18.
Standifer led BU with her ninth place finish, almost exactly a year after recording a season-ending injury in the Opener of 2010. Her time of 14:30 was a personal record for a four kilometer race, one of four Bruins to tally PRs on the day.
"It's a good start for us," Standifer said of the race. "We had a lot of girls PR, and we're happy with how things are beginning." The senior went on to talk about last season's injury, "There's a point called sideways hill, and that's where I got hurt last year, once I got past that spot today I realized it was time to move on and it ended up being a really good race."
Junior Nicole Muldowney (Hoover, Ala.) was the next Bruin to cross the line, placing 19th with a time of 14:59.59. Her sister, Kimberly Muldowney (Hoover, Ala.), recorded a personal record of 15:06.04 and placed 21st.
Rounding out the Belmont top five were freshman Mia Elbon (Nashville, Tenn.) and junior Jessica Duble (Lookout Mountain, Ga.). The former placed 34th in a time of 15:25.82, while the latter was the third BU harrier to PR, crossing the line in 15:29.56 for 39th place.
Junior Shannon Titus (Bowling Green, Ohio) was the remaining Bruin that recorded a personal best. She was the sixth to finish for BU, placing 46th overall with a time of 15:47.94 on the four kilometer course.
"The day went great," Head Coach Seth Sheridan said. "I was surprised, with the heat, how fast the women went out today. For us, Caitlin Standifer ran an absolutely great race, and the Muldowneys did well. There is still some work to do, but there were definitely some good signs moving forward."
The Bruins will return to Percy Warner Park for the Commodore Classic on Saturday September 17.
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