Oct. 3, 2008

Blue Division Results
Gold Division Results

EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State men's and women's cross country teams competed in the Notre Dame Invitational on Friday in South Bend, Ind., and for the second consecutive weekend, the Spartan women's team ran to a first place finish. Both the MSU men's and women's teams competed without its top runners.

"This was an opportunity for us to get a sense of our depth," said director of track and field and cross country Walt Drenth. "We needed to assess our team so we can see who will be traveling in our upcoming meets."

Laura Portis and Ashley Casavant were the top-finishers for the Spartans, taking fifth and seventh, respectively. Portis clocked a time of 17:45 while Casavant ran a 17:51.

Leah Elenbaas (18:08) and Bekah Smeltzer (18:11) also recorded top-20 finishes, taking 16th and 19th, respectively.

"We ran a hard, tough race today," said assistant coach Kim McGreevey. "There were a lot of great teams here and I'm really proud of our effort today. This was a good experience heading into Pre-Nationals."

The men's team took 23rd overall and was paced by Ian Girard who turned in a time of 25:07. Ian Boyle and Mick Quick didn't finish far behind, as they each ran the race in 25:11. Aaron Simoneau finished with a time of 25:18.

The meet included 60 schools, 19 of which are nationally ranked in the USTFCCCA men's and women's polls

The Spartans return to action October 18 in Terre Haute, Ind., when they compete at Pre-Nationals.