Bobcats Set to Compete at All-Ohio
Oct. 5, 2006
ATHENS, Ohio - The Ohio men's and women's cross country teams travel to Delaware, Ohio on Oct. 6, to compete against some of the best in the state at the All-Ohio Championships. The Bobcats and Head Coach, Clay Calkins, does not expect that to end this weekend. The women's cross country team heads into the All-Ohio meet ranked 10th in the Great Lakes Region by the Women's Intercollegiate Cross Country Coaches Association. The women Bobcats are the highest-ranked MAC team in the poll, followed by #14 Toledo and #15 Bowling Green. The last time the Bobcats were ranked first in the MAC was in the mid-1990s. "We had a good recruiting year and the recruits are doing quite well, " said Calkins. The returning members have been good, and everyone is healthy, so that is probably why the switch in the rankings was made." Ohio has had a great history at the All-Ohio meet since it began in the 1950s. On the men's side, Ohio has won seven team titles at the meet and on the women's side, Ohio has taken home eight titles, both sides most recently winning in 1996. Coach Calkins believes that the Ohio women are in contention to re-claim a team title this year. The women's biggest rival will be ninth ranked Ohio State. On the men's side, Calkins said a solid goal would be to finish in the top 10. "The men are running well and they finished higher at the Notre Dame meet then we expected, so they will hopefully finish well at the All-Ohio Championships," he said. At the All-Ohio meet last season, the Ohio men were led by a pair of top-six finishes from senior Jason Linton and junior Craig Leon. The men's squad finished second overall, just 11 points behind Ohio State. The women's squad was led by freshman Carime Reinhart, who took third, helping the women bring home a sixth-place finish.
The Ohio cross country teams compete at the All-Ohio after returning from the Notre Dame Invitational last weekend. Both Ohio squads were invited to compete in the top flight at the meet, the first time since the mid-1990s. Coach Calkins said the race was a great opportunity for the team and that everyone ran very well. "The competition was some of the best in the country and it was good that we had a chance to compete with those teams because we are going to see them again at Pre-Nationals and Regionals," he said. After the All-Ohio Championships, the Bobcats will run at the Pre-Nationals meet before having a week off to rest for the MAC Championships on Oct. 28.
Great Lakes Regional Rankings 1. Michigan 2. Wisconsin 3. Michigan State 4. Butler 5. Indiana 6. Marquette 7. Notre Dame 8. Valparaiso 9. Ohio State 10. Ohio 11. Purdue 12. Indiana State 13. IPFW 14. Toledo 15. Bowling Green |
