CHARLESTON, Ill.—University of Southern Indiana Men’s Cross Country lost out on a tiebreaker and finished second at the Ohio Valley Conference Championships Friday morning.
The Screaming Eagles and the University of Tennessee at Martin finished in a tie with 62 points, but the Skyhawks earned the top spot due to the placement comparisons of each team’s top five finishers.
UT Martin had the edge at No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3, while the Screaming Eagles had the edge at No. 4 and No. 5. This is the first time since point totals began being recorded in 1997 that there has been a tie atop the team leaderboard at the OVC Championships.
USI raced in the lead for much of the race, but UT Martin was able to close the gap throughout the final 1,500 meters to match the Screaming Eagles’ score at the finish.
Junior Alex Nolan and senior Dominick Beine paced the Screaming Eagles. Nolan led for much of the race but slipped a spot with just over 1,000 meters before finishing third with an eight-kilometer time of 24 minutes, 25.98 seconds.
Beine was in third with just over 1,000 meters to go but was unable to hold his position en route to a sixth-place finish and an 8k time of 24:30.44.
Both Beine and Nolan netted first-team All-OVC honors with their performances.
A strong effort from junior Cole Hess nearly gave the Screaming Eagles the victory as he finished 16th with a time of 24:57.74. His time was just .04 seconds away from a top 15 finish, which would have given USI a one-point win.
Junior Landen Swiney and sophomore Andrew Smith rounded out the Screaming Eagles’ top five with respective finishes of 18th and 19th, while freshman Carson Brown and senior Isaac Stanford were 30th and 32nd to complete USI’s scorers. Going down to the top seven comparisons, USI had the edge over UT Martin at No. 6 and No. 7.
USI, which was ranked No. 15 in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association Great Lakes Region poll, returns to action November 14 when it co-hosts the NCAA Division I Great Lakes Region Championships at Angel Mounds in Evansville, Indiana.
The Screaming Eagles and the University of Tennessee at Martin finished in a tie with 62 points, but the Skyhawks earned the top spot due to the placement comparisons of each team’s top five finishers.
UT Martin had the edge at No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3, while the Screaming Eagles had the edge at No. 4 and No. 5. This is the first time since point totals began being recorded in 1997 that there has been a tie atop the team leaderboard at the OVC Championships.
USI raced in the lead for much of the race, but UT Martin was able to close the gap throughout the final 1,500 meters to match the Screaming Eagles’ score at the finish.
Junior Alex Nolan and senior Dominick Beine paced the Screaming Eagles. Nolan led for much of the race but slipped a spot with just over 1,000 meters before finishing third with an eight-kilometer time of 24 minutes, 25.98 seconds.
Beine was in third with just over 1,000 meters to go but was unable to hold his position en route to a sixth-place finish and an 8k time of 24:30.44.
Both Beine and Nolan netted first-team All-OVC honors with their performances.
A strong effort from junior Cole Hess nearly gave the Screaming Eagles the victory as he finished 16th with a time of 24:57.74. His time was just .04 seconds away from a top 15 finish, which would have given USI a one-point win.
Junior Landen Swiney and sophomore Andrew Smith rounded out the Screaming Eagles’ top five with respective finishes of 18th and 19th, while freshman Carson Brown and senior Isaac Stanford were 30th and 32nd to complete USI’s scorers. Going down to the top seven comparisons, USI had the edge over UT Martin at No. 6 and No. 7.
USI, which was ranked No. 15 in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association Great Lakes Region poll, returns to action November 14 when it co-hosts the NCAA Division I Great Lakes Region Championships at Angel Mounds in Evansville, Indiana.
