No. 25 Ohio State Faces Early Season Challenge at Notre Dame – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/29/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Sept. 29, 2011
COLUMBUS, Ohio -The Ohio State men’s cross country team travels to Notre Dame, Ind., Friday, Sept. 30 for the 8k Notre Dame Invitational.
The Buckeyes are coming off of an impressive season-opening run at the Mountaineer Open, a race that witnessed six Buckeyes place in the top 10. OSU won the team title with 21 points.
Friday’s event will provide a more difficult challenge for the Scarlet and Gray. No. 3 Stanford and 10th-ranked Florida State headline a field that features seven top 30 opponents and experienced squads from the Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC, ACC and Big East conferences.
The Notre Dame Cross Country Course will host the event, scheduled for approximately at 5 p.m. ET. A complete recap will be available after the race at www.OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
Competing Teams
No. 31 Air Force
Auburn
Baylor
Butler
No. 14 BYU
Clemson
No. 26 Eastern Kentucky
Eastern Michigan
No. 10 Florida State
Fresno State
Georgia
Indiana State
Missouri
No. 21 New Mexico
No. 23 Notre Dame
No. 25 Ohio State
No. 35 Penn State
No. 12 Princeton
Santa Clara
No. 3 Stanford
No. 38 Texas A&M
No. 33 UCLA
UTEP
Utah State
Washington State
Weber State
Edwards Named Big Ten Runner of the Week
Senior Jake Edwards was named Big Ten Runner of the Week Sept. 22 by the conference office after his first-place showing at the Mountaineer Open.
Edwards picked up the first individual title of his Buckeye career with a 6.4k time of 19:28, helping the Buckeyes to an easy team victory at the season-opening meet. Wisconsin’s Michael Brice joined Edwards as co-Runner of the Week after a first-place performance at the Orange and Blue Preview.
The weekly honor was the first of the senior’s career.
Buckeyes 25th in USTFCCCA Top 30 Poll, Third in Great Lakes Regional Rankings
The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) released its national cross country rankings Sept. 27, with Ohio State checking-in at No. 25 in the weekly poll, a one-spot improvement from its ranking last week. Defending national champion Oklahoma State is the top-ranked team in the nation, while four Big Ten rivals – No. 2 Wisconsin, No. 6 Indiana, No. 20 Minnesota and No. 28 Michigan – join the Buckeyes in the top 30.
In the Great Lakes regional rankings, Ohio State finds itself at No. 3 overall behind the Badgers and Hoosiers. Notre Dame is fourth, with Michigan rounding out the top 5.
Follow the Buckeyes on Facebook!
The men’s track and field and cross country programs are on Facebook. Visit www.facebook.com/OSUtrackXC for the latest news and notes on the Buckeyes.
Join the Olympian Club!
A fund-raising initiative created by head coach Robert Gary, the Ohio State Olympian Club hopes to generate financial support for track and field/cross country projects that are beyond the budget but extremely valuable in enhancing the experiences of the program’s student-athletes.
Besides supporting the members of the Ohio State track and field/cross country teams both on and off the track, donations will afford the Buckeyes the opportunity to continue to operate in a first-class manner, while setting a new standard for Division I programs.
Last Time Out
Ohio State placed six athletes in the top 10 on its way to an easy victory at the 6.4k Mountaineer Open Sept. 16.
Ohio State’s 21 point team score gave the Buckeyes a dominant 43-point margin of victory over runner-up and host Appalachian State (64 points). Queens took third place with 100 points, followed by Northern Kentucky (106), East Tennessee State (118), Western Carolina (138) and UNC-Asheville (186).
Edwards (19:28.1) and Donny Roys (19:35.3) led the way for the Scarlet and Gray, finishing 1-2. Third place went to Appalachian State’s Alex Taylor (19:38.2), followed by Buckeyes Michael Brajdic (19:39.8) and Taylor Williams (19:44.1).
Julian Meyer closed the scoring for Ohio State, finishing ninth in 19:54.3. Chris Fallon made it six Buckeyes in the top 10 with a 10th-place time of 19:55.9.
Up Next
The squad will split for two meets Oct. 14, competing at both the adidas Invitational in Madison, Wisc., and the Wilmington Fall Classic in Wilmington, Ohio.
