Michigan State University
NCAA Regional
Nicole Bush Places First at NCAA Regionals
11/15/2008 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Nov. 15, 2008
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -
Nicole Bush continued her spectacular senior season on Saturday (Nov. 15), taking first place at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional meet. Bush ran the 6,000 meter course in 20:48.5, nearly nine seconds faster than the nearest competitor, and has qualified for the NCAA Championship. As a team, the Spartan women placed third, just missing the automatic bid to the NCAA Championships as the top-two teams in each region receive an automatic bid.
"I'm pretty pleased with the way we ran," said director of track & field/cross country Walt Drenth. "I thought we raced better, but we're just not quite where we need to be. Nicole Bush is running like one of the best in the country right now."
Fellow senior Lisa Senakiewich also turned in a great performance, placing sixth with a time of 21:21. Senakiewich's finish also qualifies her for the NCAA Championships. In addition to Bush and Senkiewich, the Spartans placed four additional runners in the top-40 with sophomore Emily Langenberg taking 15th (21:42.4), Carlie Green (22:00.7) placing 26th, Emily MacLeod finishing in 35th (22:07.5) and Sarah Price in 38th (22:15.9).
"We made a lot of progress today and were much closer to Michigan and Wisconsin than at the conference meet," Drenth said. "I feel like we can go to nationals and run really well."
The Spartans will have the opportunity to make NCAA Championships as an at-large team when the field is announced early this week.
The men's team repeated its performance from last season as they took sixth for the second-consecutive year. Junior Pat Grosskopf led the men's team with a 26th place finish as he completed the 10,000 meter course in 32:06.5. Senior Spencer Beatty was close behind, finishing 29th with a time of 32:11.2. Senior Adam Sprangel and sophomore Joe Dimambro were the next two Spartans to cross the finish line, placing 35th and 38th respectively.
Senior Dustin Voss rounded out the Spartans' top-five finishers, placing 50th with a time of 32:24.1.
"The men raced really well today, too," Drenth said. "With a young group, the future looks good and they've really turned the corner. They really took a great shot at it today."
The NCAA Championships will be held November 24 in Terre Haute, Ind.
Players Mentioned
