Sept. 19, 1997
Irish Men and Women Cruise to First at National Catholic Invitational
Notre Dame, Ind. - The Notre Dame men's and women's cross country teams breezed through the competiton at the National Catholic Invitational on Friday as they both easily finished first overall. The men finished with 16 points and just missed capturing the top five spots and beat second place finisher Lewis by 101 points. The women finished with 21 points, 135 points ahead of St. Benedict. Lewis University won the men's college division of the invitational, while St. Benedict finished first in the women's college division.
Notre Dame freshman Ryan Shay once again finished first overall as he ended up with a time of 24:53. He was joined in the top five by teammates Antonio Arce, who finshed second with a time 24:59, Ted Higgins and All-American Jason Rexing. The Irish placed seven finishers in the top 10 as they once again easily outdistanced the competition.
Notre Dame All-American JoAnna Deeter, recovering from her sixth-place finish last week, finished first overall with a time of 17:39. Irish sophomore Alison Klemmer repeated her second-place finish at the Scarlet and Grey Invitational as she followed up Deeter with a time of 17:47, and Nicole LaSelle and Mieke Walsh placed third and fourth respectively for the Irish. Notre Dame placed four runners in the top five and five runners in the top fifteen.
Men's Top Ten Women's Top Ten
1. Ryan Shay, ND 24:53 1. JoAnna Deeter, ND 17:39
2. Antonio Arce, ND 24:59 2. Alison Kleemer, ND 17:47
3. Ted Higgins, ND 25:26 3. Nicole LaSelle, ND 17:53
4. Jason Rexing, ND 25:29 4. Mieke Walsh, ND 17:57
5. Mirek Bieniecki, Lewis 25:31 5. Beth Bayser, Lewis 18:06
6. Scott Grace, ND 25:31 6. Tina Richards, Siena Heights 18:27
7. Anthony Alt, ND 25:32 7. Angie Lefere, Det. Mercy 18:30
8. Ryan Maxwell, ND 25:41 8. Amy Crews, Marian 18:35
9. William Benedict, H.C. 25:46 9. Jenny Richey, Loras 18:41
10. Dan Moroney, Dayton 25:48 10. Amy Edwards, Loras 18:46
