Junior Jennifer Comastri (Indianapolis, Indiana) finished fifth out of 402 runners to lead No. 13 University of Southern Indiana Women’s Cross Country to a sixth-place showing at the Lewis University Crossover Saturday morning.
Comastri trudged through cold, damp and windy conditions to finish the six-kilometer race in 22 minutes, 50.8 seconds. Senior Hope Jones (Cumberland, Indiana) was 26th with a 6k time of 23:21.1 to aid the Screaming Eagles, who finished with 226 points in a 36-team field that featured six nationally-ranked programs.
In addition to Comastri and Jones, USI was aided by freshman Presley Warren (Henderson, Kentucky), who finished 60th overall, as well as junior Doriane Langlois (Stains, France), who was 69th. Senior Ashley Lawhorn (Frankfort, Kentucky) was 92nd to round out the Eagles’ top-five competitors; while sophomore Emma Brown (Evansville, Indiana) and freshman Aubrey Swart (Noblesville, Indiana) were 114th and 126th, respectively, to complete USI’s top seven.
No. 2 Grand Valley State University won the team title with 32 total points, while Grand Valley State senior Allie Ludge was the individual winner with a time of 22:12.1. No. 5 Augustana University finished second with 119 points, while No. 12 Walsh University was third with 166 points.
The top five teams were respectively rounded out by Saginaw Valley State University (211 points) and Michigan Tech University (216 points), while No. 22 Wayne State University (259 points) and No. 17 Missouri Southern State University were seventh and 18th, respectively, to round out the performances of the nationally-ranked programs.
Saturday’s meet was USI’s final tune-up prior to the Great Lakes Valley Conference Championships, which the Eagles host October 26 at Angel Mounds in Evansville, Indiana. USI also hosts the NCAA II Midwest Region Championships November 9 at Angel Mounds.
