NSU Sharks News

Three runners set personal records on Friday

Titusville, Fla. (Oct. 2, 2009) - Nova Southeastern University's men's and women's cross country teams placed second and fourth, respectively, at the flrunners.com Invitational 10 on Friday. The men's team totaled 36 points, while the women compiled 131 points.

"With the guys, they ran as a pack and tried a new racing strategy," said head coach Bryan Hagopian. "We used this as a training run to see where we are. We accomplished what we wanted to do at this meet.

"I am super impressed with our women's team," continued Hagopian. "They all ran a smart race and were aggressive. I'm super happy that they ran great and are living up their potential."

On the women's side, Krystal Porter (Sr., Raytown, Mo.) paced the Sharks with a season-best 5K time of 19:06.32 and finished 11th. Tara Haddock (Sr., Citrus Springs, Fla.) also ran a season-best time for a 5K, clocking 19:23.92 and placing 16th. Meanwhile, NSU's final three runners all clocked personal records. Juliana Tabares (Fr., West Palm Beach, Fla.) was 25th and covered the course in a time of 20:16.78, taking 12 seconds off her previous top 5K time. Kristina Williams (Fr., Fort Worth, Texas) placed 38th with a time of 21:05.50, which was over two minutes better than her previous personal record. Stacyann Daley (So., Orlando, Fla.) rounded out the Sharks in 81st and cross the finish line ina time of 25:07.21 - a 33-second improvement on her previous personal record.

Jacksonville won the women's team title by sweeping the competition with 15 points.

Brendan Chwalek (Fr., Sellersburg, Ind.) led the Sharks with a fourth-place finish in the men's 5K race. Chwalek broke his own school record on Friday finishing in a time of 16:12.14. The previous school record was 16:15.42 set earlier this season at the Greentree Invitational on Sept. 4.

NSU got a bulk of its team points from Agustin Rey (Jr., Coral Springs, Fla.), Kevin Meagher (Fr., Mansfield, Mass.), John Besharat (Jr., Miami, Fla.) and Mike Greiner (Fr., Palm Coast, Fla.) as the quartet finished six seconds a part to take 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th, respectively. Rey raced 16:29.64, while Meagher clocked 16:32.93. Besharat had a personal record time of 16:34.61, while Greiner also had a personal record time of 16:34.90.

Jonathan Junkins (So., Lecanto, Fla.) had a personal record time of 16:46.24 and placed 18th, while Joe Peña (Jr., Jacksonville, Fla.) was right behind in 19th with a career-best time of 16:47.48. Chris Jacob ran a career-best time of 17:01.40 and placed 23rd. Robert Rowe (Fr., Coral Gables, Fla.) followed in 24th with a personal best time of 17:02.33. Michael Whitehead (Fr., Florence, Ky.) covered the course in a time of 17:12.88 and placed 26th. Nico Crecco (Fr., Mendon, N.Y.) was 53rd with a time of 18:42.95. Ivan Almanza (Fr., Hollywood, Fla.) ran 20:40.81 and was 76th, while Kevin Yarbrough (Fr., Addison, Ill.) rounded out the Sharks in 81st-place with a time of 21:42.94.

Florida Gulf Coast edged out NSU by one point for the men's team title. Florida Gulf Coast had 35 points.

NSU is back in action on Saturday, Oct. 10 when the Sharks travel to Lake Buena Vista, Fla., for the Walt Disney World Cross Country Classic. The men's 8K race is scheduled for 7:45 a.m., while the women's 5K is scheduled for 8:30 a.m.

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