Nov. 23, 2002

Results

ASHLAND, Ohio. --- Stevie Laurie finished 29th overall and 27th among scoring finishers with a time of 32:19.2 in the men's 10-kilometer race to lead UC Davis to an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships at Ashland University (Ohio) Saturday. The Aggies scored 282 team points, edging ninth-place Grand Valley State (Mich.) by a single point in the scoring column.

Western State of Colorado won the men's title with 35 points, well ahead of Abilene Christian (Texas), which scored 81 points. Adams State, another Colorado school, scored 131 points to place third overall. UC Davis' California Collegiate Athletic Association rival Chico State placed 5th at 154.

"We ran pretty strong and probably could have finished seventh," said Aggie men's coach Jim Hunt. "Overall, I can't complain. Everyone laid it on the line and did the best they could do, and that's the way it ended up."

Laurie earned All-America honors by virtue of his finish among the Top 25 U.S. citizens. Nate Bristow was second among the Aggies at 32:48.6, finishing 50th overall. Alex Daniels finished 61st (33:00.4), Matt Laye placed 83rd (33:19.4) and Steve Fairclough was 97th (33:35.2) to round out the Aggie scorers. Jak Kuehn was 113th with a time of 33:49.3 and Justin Rau added a 121st-place clocking of 33:58.8.

UC Davis head cross country coach Sue Williams cited the cold weather as a factor in the race. Blizzard conditions buried the course the day before, leaving a slushy surface on which to compete.

"You know it's cold when half-inch spikes aren't catching in the snow," said Laurie, "but the bottom line is that it's a race and every man counts."

Laurie ran in approximately 65th place after the first kilometer, and 50th after the second, but slowly worked his way toward the front of the pack to take 29th in the field of 186 finishers.

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2002 NCAA DIV. II CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHPS

MEN'S TEAM SCORES - 1. Western State (Colo.) 35; 2. Abilene Christian (Texas) 81; 3. Adams State (Colo.) 131; 4. South Dakota State 143; 5. Chico State 154; 6. Massachusetts-Lowell 206; 7. Missouri Southern State 265; 8. UC DAVIS 282; 9. Grand Valley State (Mich.) 283; 10. Fort Hays State 327; 11. Hillsdale (Mich.) 332; 12. Alaska Anchorage 358; 13. Kennesaw State (Ga.) 359; 14 (tie). Truman State (Mo.) 367, Harding (Ark.) 367; 16. South Dakota 377; 17. Edinboro (Pa.) 409; 18. Millersville (Pa.) 475; 19. North Florida 481; 20. Shippensburg (Pa.) 495; 21. Central Missouri State 533; 22. Bentley (Mass.) 554; 23. Mars Hill (N.C.) 656; 24. Pfeiffer (N.C.) 785.

MEN'S INDIVIDUALS (top 25 plus Aggies) - 1. Alfred Rugema, Abilene, 30:43.7; 2. Nick Cordes, Ashland, 30:46.5; 3. Zepherinus Joseph, North Florida, 30:51.0; 4. William Banks, Western State, 31:04.1; 5. Cele Rodriguez, Adams State, 31:04.6; 6. Rubin McRae, Western State, 31:14.7; 7. Paul Kezes, Western Washington, 31:16.7; 8. Josh Eberly, Western State, 31:30.5; 9. Bernard Manirakiza, Abilene Christian, 31:33.0; 10. Chris Siemers, Western State, 31:33.3; 11. Chris Eggers, Chico State, 31:36.7; 12. Matt Levassiur, Adams State, 31:42.8; 13. Josh Merrick, Adams State, 31:44.0; 14. John Kemboi, Abilene Christian, 31:56.1; 15. Kelly Christiansen, Western State, 31:58.9; 16. Timothy Parr, Western State, 31:58.9; 17. Brad Lowery, South Dakota State, 32:00.8; 18. Phillip McPherson, Western State, 32:00.9; 19. Kevin Doe, South Dakota State, 32:00.9; 20. Patrick Boivin, Chico State, 32:03.0; 21. Greg Darbyshire, South Dakota State, 32:04.4; 22. Daryn Parker, Fort Hays State (Kan.), 32:07.8; 23. Mark Stallings, Millersville, 32:08.9; 24. Adam Lindahl, South Dakota, 32:11.1; 25. Joseph Mutai, Kennesaw State, 32:11.5... 29. Steve Laurie, 32:19.2; 50. Nate Bristow, 32:48.6; 61. Alex Daniels, 33:00.4; 83. Matt Laye, 33:19.4; 97. Steve Fairclough, 33:35.2; 113. Jak Kuehn, 33:49.3; 121. Justin Rau, 33:58.8.

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