2008 Woodie Awards
Cross country teams run well at PSACs, prepare for regionals
By Josh Rizzo
Rocket Contributor
Issue date: 11/2/07 Section: Sports
Slippery Rock men's cross country team was the favorite to win the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference championship.
Ranked in the top 10 nationally, the Green and White seemed poised to bring home the title.
But unfortunately for the Rock, Edinboro ran a better race and managed to upset the heavily favored Rock team. SRU's score of 41 was behind only that of Edinboro, who won with a score of 33.
Edinboro is no slouch, however: The team was also ranked in the top 10 nationally before the PSAC championships.
"I thought going in we had the best team," said Coach John Papa. "However, all of our runners did not run their best race and Edinboro managed to run a better race."
While the team was unable to capture the team title, one Rock runner managed to capture the gold. Senior Matt Bluman paced all runners with a time of 26:18. He was SRU's first individual PSAC champion since Jeff Weiss won in 2005.
The win was especially significant because it was Bluman's first collegiate victory. He is the second Rock runner to win his first race this season. Kevin Dustin also managed his first victory earlier in the season.
Bluman said winning the race was not even one of his goals coming in.
"Winning the race was one of the best things that has ever happened in my life," Bluman said. "I went out there to help the team and ended up running one of my best races."
Two time All-American Weiss finished in sixth place, his lowest finish since coming to the Rock. He won the gold medal in 2005 and the silver in 2006.
Two other runners from the Rock managed to crack the top 10. Junior Pat Reagan finished seventh, while senior Chris Geddis finished eighth. Also scoring for SRU was Dustin, a junior, who in his first race back from an injury managed to finish in 20th place.
The women's team also performed well at the PSAC Championships, with the team exceeding expectations by finishing in fourth place.
"We were ranked No. 8 in the conference going into the race and were aiming for fifth place," said Papa. "All of our girls managed to run great races and we were able to finish in fourth."
Ranked in the top 10 nationally, the Green and White seemed poised to bring home the title.
But unfortunately for the Rock, Edinboro ran a better race and managed to upset the heavily favored Rock team. SRU's score of 41 was behind only that of Edinboro, who won with a score of 33.
Edinboro is no slouch, however: The team was also ranked in the top 10 nationally before the PSAC championships.
"I thought going in we had the best team," said Coach John Papa. "However, all of our runners did not run their best race and Edinboro managed to run a better race."
While the team was unable to capture the team title, one Rock runner managed to capture the gold. Senior Matt Bluman paced all runners with a time of 26:18. He was SRU's first individual PSAC champion since Jeff Weiss won in 2005.
The win was especially significant because it was Bluman's first collegiate victory. He is the second Rock runner to win his first race this season. Kevin Dustin also managed his first victory earlier in the season.
Bluman said winning the race was not even one of his goals coming in.
"Winning the race was one of the best things that has ever happened in my life," Bluman said. "I went out there to help the team and ended up running one of my best races."
Two time All-American Weiss finished in sixth place, his lowest finish since coming to the Rock. He won the gold medal in 2005 and the silver in 2006.
Two other runners from the Rock managed to crack the top 10. Junior Pat Reagan finished seventh, while senior Chris Geddis finished eighth. Also scoring for SRU was Dustin, a junior, who in his first race back from an injury managed to finish in 20th place.
The women's team also performed well at the PSAC Championships, with the team exceeding expectations by finishing in fourth place.
"We were ranked No. 8 in the conference going into the race and were aiming for fifth place," said Papa. "All of our girls managed to run great races and we were able to finish in fourth."
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