The Hawkeyes finish middle of the pack in Minnesota.
By Adam Hensley
Iowa cross-country competed against a tough field in its third meet of the season, the Roy Griak Invitational, on Sept. 24 in Minneapolis.
The men placed 15th in the 8,000 meters, and the women finished 24th in the 6,000.
For the men’s squad, Ben Anderson led the way, with his time of 25:50 good enough for 34th. Michael Melchert (26:06) followed at 56th, and Nathan Mylenek (26:31) rounded out Iowa’s top three at 93rd.
Clocking a time of 23:23, Tess Wilberding finished 94th — the best place on the women’s side — and became Iowa’s top runner for the third-consecutive race.
Sophomores Andrea Shine (101) and Lauren Opatrny (118) were the next two Iowa runners to cross the finish line, Shine finishing in 23:27 and Opatrny at 23:41.
The men squared off against 28 teams, and the women competed against 33.
Sept. 24 marked Iowa’s first opportunity against top competition, and the field featured several ranked teams.
Two Hawkeyes — Kevin Docherty and Ian Eklin — returned to their home state of Minnesota. Neither of them finished in the top-seven places for the men’s team, but Docherty finished in 27:32 in his first meet of the season.
The last time the Hawkeyes competed at Griak was in 2013, when the men finished 15th and the women placed 21st.
Next up for Iowa: the Regional Preview. Hawkeye fans will get their second opportunity this season to watch their team compete at the Ashton Cross-Country Course. The meet is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Saturday.