University of South Carolina Upstate Athletics
Virginia Tech Alumni Invitational
Kemboi Leads Spartans with Second Place Finish
9/18/2009 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Sept. 18, 2009
Men's Individual Results
Women's Individual Results
Men's & Women's Team Results
BLACKSBURG, Va. - The USC Upstate cross country team had several strong runs at the Virginia Tech Alumni Invitational on Friday evening. The women, who finished tied for fourth, ran a 4.6k, while the men, who ran a 7.6k, finished in sixth place.
The women's team was lead by Carolyne Chelulei and Jemeli Sang. Chelulei finished in 11th place after posting a time of 17:04.6, while Sang recorded a time of 17:15.8 and a 14th place finish.
Head cross country coach Jimmy Stephens said, "I was proud of the effort our girls gave in the event. This has been the best competition we have faced since moving to the D-I level. If we want to be the best then we will have to continue to race well against quality teams like we faced in this meet."
The Spartans also got strong performances from Joan Tangwar and Lauren Walker. Tangwar ran the event in a time of 17:50.6 en route to a 22nd place finish. Walker finished 10 spots behind Tangwar after a meet time of 18:09.8.
The Florida State women's team, 26 points, won the VT Alumni Invitational, followed by Wake Forest (61) and Virginia Tech (100). Ohio (119) and Upstate (119) tied for fourth, with UNC Charlotte (136), VT Alumni (210) and Concord (210) rounding out the field.
"The women's team had a good day on tough course. They had a quality effort and I was pleased with it. Our goal heading into the event was to finish in the top five and we did that by tying Ohio for fourth place," said assistant cross country coach Carson Blackwelder.
Emily Tangwar finished the event in 51st place with a time of 18:48.9. Laura Transue (20:09.8) and Jillian Finney (25:44.4) posted finishes of 66th and 89th respectively.
The men's team was led by Gilbert Kemboi who finished second overall and was the first collegiate runner to cross the finish line. Kemboi posted a time of 23:43.9 which was less than two seconds behind race winner Ridge Robinson.
The second Spartan to cross the finish line was Christian Ritacco. Ritacco recorded a 23rd place finish after a meet time of 25:14.9. James Jackson crossed the finish line in a time of 25:44.5 and a 41st place finish. Right behind Jackson in 43rd place was Cameron Thomas, who posted an event time of 25:46.7.
"Everyone on the men's team ran well and I was proud of their effort. It was another strong effort as we moved toward the Atlantic Sun Championships at the end of October," said Stephens. "Gilbert was very impressive with his effort as he was the first collegiate runner to cross the finish line."
Virginia Tech, 27 points, won the men's event followed in second by Florida State (50). UNC Charlotte (92) claimed third, with Ohio (117) and Wake Forest (121) rounding out the top five. Upstate (131) claimed sixth, followed by Concord (221) and Roanoke (244).
"The men's team also had a good day," added Blackwelder. "Gilbert finished second and was right with the leader as he ran strong and closed very well at the end. Cameron and Christian had good runs as they stuck with the game plan and moved up during the second half of the race. I am proud of the effort of all the guys facing such quality competition in the event."
Matt Henderson finished 50th after a meet time of 26:01.2. Rounding out the Spartans men's team was David Dennison in 62nd place, with recorded a time of 26:33.3.
The Spartans will have next run on Oct. 2 when they compete in the Charlotte Invite. That meet is scheduled to begin at 4:15 p.m.
