University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Penn State National
Cross Country Visits Penn State Friday
October 12, 2017 | Cross Country
STATE COLLEGE, Penn. - The University of North Carolina cross country teams travel to the Penn State National for the final meet of the regular season Friday. The Tar Heels will race 8 in the women's 6k at 10:45 a.m. and then 10 in the men's 5.2-mile run at 11:30 a.m.
HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
Fans can follow @UNCTrack_Field on Twitter to receive information as results are made available. A meet recap and results will be posted on GoHeels.com following the completion of competition.Â
THE FIELD
Men - Akron, Bucknell, Cornell, Duquesne, George Washington, James Madison, Kent State, Lehigh, Loyola, North Carolina, Oklahoma State (9), Penn State, UC Davis, Villanova and William & Mary.
Women - Akron, Bucknell, Buffalo, Cornell, Dartmouth, George Washington, James Madison, Kent State, Lehigh, Loyola, North Carolina, Oklahoma State (26), Penn State (10), Princeton, UC Davis, Villanova (15), West Virginia (29) and William & Mary.
North Carolina Men - Jeremy Brown, Logan Carroll, Carl Geiger, Jake McEneaney, Brodie Modini, Mark Myers, Luke Peterson, Mitch Resor, Matt Thornton, Brandon Tubby.
North Carolina Women - Caroline Alcorta, Made Clahane, Blake Dodge, Erin Edmundson, Casey Greenwalt, Morgan Ilse, Lindsey Lanier and Ashley Smith.
HEAD COACH MARK VANALSTYNE - MEET COMMENTS
On practice since the Louisville Classic
"What I've seen in practice is a lot of stress. It's a tough time of the semester. Everyone's got projects and midterms. They've been grinding through it, but you can tell it weighs on them. So, we're looking forward to getting on the road tomorrow and hopefully getting focused about the race that's coming up on Friday, and really kind of taking care of some business we didn't fully take care of at Louisville."
On takeaways from Louisville
"I felt like we executed the beginning of our plan, but we weren't very tough, and that's on both sides. For a team that prides itself on being tough and being able to grit it out when others let go, it was kind of a rude awakening. So I think our goal is to go back and reestablish who we are."
On the team's focus heading into Penn State
"It's the ability to hurt. It's the ability to endure it longer than your competitors are willing to endure it, and I think we let go early at Louisville. Once we saw things weren't going perfectly, we let go. The guys know that. I don't even have to bring it up. They're harder on themselves than I think our coaching staff could ever be. So, they want an opportunity to redeem themselves."Â
LAST TIME OUT
Morgan Ilse finished ninth out of 328 runners in 16:51.17 in the Louisville Classic, a race billed as the nation's largest cross country meet. Ilse helped the University of North Carolina women's cross country team to a 14th-place finish out of 37 teams. The men's squad finished 15th out of 30 teams.
Caroline Alcorta made her anticipated season debut in the race, finishing 33rd in 17:18.07. However, it was Morgan Ilse who stole the show with a 40-second 5k personal best and a top-10 finish in one of the nation's most competitive regular-season races of the season. Ilse won the Mountains to Sea Open two weeks ago, leading the Tar Heels to a team victory in the meet.
Mady Clahane finished 102nd in 17:56.54 with Erin Edmundson following shortly behind in 18:06.39 to take 121st. Emma Astrike-Davis claimed 169th in 18:30.26 to round out the scoring for the Tar Heels on the morning.
On the men's side, Jeremy Brown led the Tar Heels, finishing in 72nd with a time of 24:50.20. Logan Carroll took 90th in 25:02.39. Mark Myers finished 122nd in 25:18.77. Matt Thornton finished fourth for the Tar Heels, claiming 129th in 25:23.12, an 18-second 5k personal best. Mitch Resor rounded out the scoring in 135th with a time of 25:27.58.
Players Mentioned
