Oct. 20, 2008
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – The University of Kentucky cross country teams both finished in the top seven of their respective races at the Penn State National Invitational on the Blue and White Golf Course in State College, Pa., this weekend. The UK women placed sixth while the men finished seventh, respectively, at the meet consisting of teams from 28 schools.
Three seniors led the charge for the Kentucky women at Penn State with Jessica Ortman crossing the finish first for the Wildcats for the fourth consecutive meet. The senior’s 6K time of 21:09 paced the squad. Jenna Ortman finished steps behind Jessica in 23rd place, clocking in at 21:13. Classmate Andrea Halasek followed soon after taking home 29th place with a mark of 21:19. Sophomore Katherine Peterson placed 34th overall in a time of 21:25. Junior Lindsay Petri was the final scoring position for the Wildcats turning in the 62nd marker with a time of 22:02. The spread for UK’s top five runners was 53 seconds.
The Wildcat women placed sixth overall with 167 points; just 13 out of fourth place. West Virginia won the women’s championship with 40 points.
“Our women made a significant step forward in their level of performance,” said UK assistant coach John Mortimer. “Each member of our team ran a personal best for a 6K race. The Penn State course is very challenging, which makes their showing even more impressive.”
Sophomore Adam Henken led the men with a sixth-place finish over the course measuring just over five miles. Henken’s time of 25:26 was well under a five-minute pace for the course. Junior Jeremy Zagorski finished second for the Wildcats in 35th with a time of 26:04. Freshman Colin Heenan continued his impressive rookie campaign by crossing the line in 26:12; good for 46th overall. Senior Bruce Hordusky (63rd – 26:29) and freshman John Luttrell (67th – 26:31) closed out the scoring for the UK men.
The Blue and White placed seventh overall with 217 points; just 10 out of sixth place. Georgetown won the men’s title with 43 points.
“Adam Henken has quickly established himself as a dominant college runner,” said Mortimer. “He has progressed from his modest high school times to racing among the elite in the NCAA. He ran nearly two minutes faster on the same course this year when compared to last season.”
Over the next two weeks, Kentucky will prepare for the SEC Championships hosted by Mississippi State University in Starkville, Miss., on Monday, Nov. 3.
“Collectively and individually, we ran our best races of the year,” Mortimer added. “With the SEC meet only two weeks away, our men and women are rounding into great shape at the right time.”
Stay tuned to UKathletics.com for all of the latest cross country news.
