University of Southern Indiana men’s cross country placed second in their opening meet of the season Friday at the Covered Bridge Open in Boone, North Carolina. The Screaming Eagles finished with 47 points, just four behind winner and NCAA Division I team Florida State.
Senior James Cecil (Owensboro, Kentucky) paced the Eagles, placing fourth in the 8k race with a time of 26 minutes, 13.94 seconds. Sophomore Austin Nolan (Evansville, Indiana) was only a second behind, coming in sixth with a time of 26:14.48.
The third Eagle to finish in the top-10 was junior Darin Lawrence (Indianapolis, Indiana), taking 10th in 26:26.91. Sophomore Nathan Hall (Springfield, Missouri) was 12th with a time of 26:27.83, identical to that of the 11th-place finisher. Rounding out the scoring for USI was senior Bastian Grau (Höchstadt, Germany), as he placed 20th in 26:48.05.
Edwin Kurgat of Tennessee-Martin won the event in 25:52.08. USI topped four other Division I schools in the event.
The Eagles return to action in two weeks when they host the Stegemoller Classic at Angel Mounds September 16.
