Cross-Country finishes low in A-10 championships

Peter Mason
Contributing Writer

After five regular-season meets of placing no lower than second, the VCU cross-country teams could not match their previous success in the Atlantic 10 Championships on Saturday, Nov. 1 at Schenley Park.

The championship meet, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, pitted the top-performers of the A-10 against one another for individual and team titles.

The highest placing Ram for the men’s team in the eight kilometer run (8k) was senior Mohamed Adam, who finished 41st with a time of 25:45. Senior Sam Hush placed almost 20 seconds behind, finishing 53rd overall with a time of 26:04. Senior Matthew Earman was the third highest placing runner for VCU in 79th place with a time of 26:29. The times recorded for Hush and Earman were their fastest of the 2014 season. The Rams finished overall with a total of 340 points. The men’s team placed 12th out of 14 overall.

For the women’s cross-country team, sophomore Emily Dyke was the leading Ram, finishing 39th overall with a time of 18:55 in the five kilometer (5k) run. She was the only Ram to finish in the top-40, and freshmen runners Nichelle Scott and Courtney Holleran placed second and third for the team, respectively. Scott came in 67th with a time of 19:28, and Holleran finished 82nd with a time of 19:42. Overall, the women’s cross-country team finished last in a field of 14 with a total score of 352 points.

Even with the lower-than-expected finishes, Adam and Dyke led the way for their respective teams all season, placing first among their teammates all six meets.

The disappointing results came after back-to-back 10th place finishes in the A-10 championships in 2013 and 2012.

George Mason University was the winning team in the men’s competition. Duquesne University secured the win for the women’s side of competition.