TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – The Purdue cross country teams had solid showings at the 2009 Indiana Intercollegiate Championships, hosted by Indiana State University on Friday, as the women finished second overall, while the men earned third place. Freshman Camille Buscomb was the top finisher for the women, taking third place overall, while junior Caden Shields led the men’s effort with an eighth-place individual finish.
The Boilermaker women were the team runners-up, tallying just 52 points and finishing just five points shy of team champion Indiana University.
Buscomb posted the seventh-fastest Purdue 5K time at the Indiana Intercollegiates in school history, crossing the line in a career-best 17:38.1. Senior Sarah Klaczynski was the second finisher for the Boilermakers, shattering her personal record and taking seventh overall with a time of 18:14.4, while classmate Kristin Phillips was right behind her in ninth place with a mark of 18:16.5.
Sophomores Stephanie Bonk and Katie Conrad rounded out the Purdue scoring, finishing 14th and 19th as Bonk posted a time of 18:44.5, while Conrad crossed the line in 19:02.7. Rookies Kelly McCurdy and Erin Czuprynski axed their personal records as well as McCurdy lowered her season best by 37 seconds to 19:06.3, while Czuprynski knocked 34 seconds off her best to 19:21.3.
Behind Shields’ solid race the Boilermakers compiled 100 points as a team to take third in the team standings, jumping three spots from last year’s race. Shields notched a personal record for the second straight week, shaving the mark down to 25:12.2 with his eighth-place showing. Sophomore Simon Rogers was stellar in his debut, finishing 19th overall (scoring 18th) with his first collegiate 8K time of 25:58.2, and classmate Charles White made a huge improvement over his season debut, scoring 22nd with a time of26:06.3.
Sophomores Ladd Mercer and Cale Allen capped the Boilermakers’ top five, adding points at 24th and 28th with respective times of 26:11.8 and 26:17.0. Rookies Stephen Schulz and Robert Stewart made huge improvements over their collegiate bests as well shaving more than 40 seconds apiece from their times at the Great American Legends opener.
The Boilermakers return to action in two weeks, heading to the University of Louisville for the Louisville Community Classic.
