Falcons Cross Country Finds Success At Mel Brodt

Friday, September 1

Bowling Green, Ohio

6:30 pm

Bowling Green State University

Mel Brodt Collegiate Invitational

September 01, 2017 | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country

By: By Katherine Harvath, BGSU Athletic Communications

PHOTO GALLERY

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University men's and women's cross country teams opened the 2017 season with a strong showing as they hosted the University of Toledo Rockets at the 30th Mel Brodt Invitational on Friday, Sept. 1. After just narrowly missing out on first at the event during his sophomore season, junior Noah Schaub of the Falcons ran away with first place, finishing with a time of 15:30.1, a personal best.

"We were all really pumped that we could get this season started," he said. "We've been anxiously waiting for a while now. It was a great experience though, I really enjoyed it."

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The men started off the evening competing in a 5,000m race. Bowling Green saw nine runners compete including Schaub, Jonathan Wenning and Tyler Phillips who all placed in the top five. Wenning recorded a time of 15:44.5, just edging Alberto Chelimo of Toledo for third by 0.4 seconds while Phillips set a PR of 15:50.7. Jacob Schenten finished seventh with a time of 16:00.0 and Nick Voth placed ninth, clocking in at 16:07.5 to round out the top ten.

Kohl Taberner had a final time of 16:23.3 (12th). Kyle Repetto finished just behind Taberner in 16:25.4 while Paul Garbarino finished in 16:26.7 for 15th. Raymond Berling, a redshirt freshman for the Falcons, saw his first collegiate race, finishing with a time of 16:39.7.

In total, 31 runners took part in the men's event. Bowling Green took the men's title, outscoring Toledo 25-30. The Bowling Green Track Club also competed, finishing with a total score of 85.

Senior Elena Lancioni recorded the best time for the Falcons in the women's event, finishing with a time of 18:21.1 in a hard fight for fourth against freshman Jessi Lindstrom, who ran unattached, with just a tenth of a second separating the two.

"[Lancioni's performance] today was her best opener in her four years here," Head Coach Lou Snelling said. "I think that's a spot that she and every one else can grow from. Every two weeks we get a little bit better."

Twenty-one women competed in the 5,000m event this year, with athletes coming from BGSU, Toledo and the Bowling Green Track Club. Rachel Durbin, a redshirt senior, finished ninth with a time of 19:02.3. Freshman Megan Aalberts (unattached) finished just behind Durbin, crossing the line at 9:11.7, while Cassie Boyle followed her with a time of 19:16.3. Also competing for the Falcons was Kelsie Mothersead who finished in 19:21.9, with Allison Holahan close behind in her first race for the Orange and Brown (19:22.3).

"Having all the fans here was really great, being able to have all the support here at home," Lancioni said. "It definitely helps to start our season on a positive note. We had a lot of great performances today and I hope we can build upon those as the season progresses."

Although the women fell to the Rockets 17-44, BGSU Head Coach Lou Snelling views it as a great stepping stone to what the rest of the season holds for his teams.

"The first meet of the season allows us to just gauge fitness, kind of get a sense of where we are at," Snelling said. "Everybody can grow from this. What we should see is every two weeks, just continuing to get a little bit better.

"We have a long way to go this season so we are just looking at it in blocks for now. For now, the next two weeks will be our focus, just taking the next step and seeing the improvement happen."

The Falcons are back in action in two weeks when they travel to East Lansing, Mich. for the Spartan Invitational, which is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 15.