Oct. 4, 2008

Results

STILLWATER, Okla. - With just 35 seconds separating the RedHawks' first and fifth finisher, the Miami University women's cross country team used a stellar team effort to finish an impressive third with 130 points at the Cowboy Jamboree, hosted by Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

"We did a really, really good job today. We were just 12 points behind second-place Oklahoma State who competes in the national championship regularly. That bodes well for the future," said Miami head coach Rita Arndt-Molis.

Laura Neufarth was the top Miami finisher, coming in 16th place at 21:52 in the six-kilometer race. Kelsey McHugh finished impressively at 21:59, good for 20th place.

"The last 3,000 meters was pretty rough, but we ran well as a team over that stretch," Arndt-Molis continued. "We need to be more assertive at the beginning so that we are passing the right people, instead of just passing people in general."

Kelley Miller took 29th with a time of 22:14, while Amanda Mirochna was 30th with a time of 22:15. Rachel Patterson rounded out the RedHawk scoring with a 35th place finish at 22:27.

Maggie Bingham was 36th overall with a time of 22:28 and Katie Lenahan was close behind at 22:42, finishing 46th.

"There was only 50 seconds separating our first and seventh-place runner so that gives us some depth and allows us to be bold and take some chances down the road. That makes us a dangerous team at pre-nationals in two weeks," Arndt-Molis finished.

Northern Arizona won the meet with 61 points while the host Cowgirls were second at 118. Behind Miami's 130 points was fourth-place Kansas at 160, while Kansas State was fifth at 185.

The RedHawks will travel to the NCAA Pre-Nationals competition at Indiana State University in Terre Haute, Ind. on Oct. 18 with the race beginning at 11 a.m. ET.