WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Purdue men’s and women’s cross country teams head to Terre Haute, Ind., for the second time this season on Saturday, set to compete in the Gibson Family Collegiate Invitational, hosted by the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and DePauw University at Indiana State University. Both teams will run a limited squad, holding out some of their top runners to prepare for the end of the season.
The Boilermaker men will hold out junior Caden Shields and sophomore Simon Rogers, while the women’s team won’t run standout freshman Camille Buscomb and seniors Kristin Phillips and Sarah Klaczynski.
“We have just a month left before the conference and regional championships, and we need to give some rest to those who need it,” said head coach Jack Warner. “This weekend will give them a week off before a preview of the regional course, and then it’s on to the postseason. Both teams are very excited for the conference meet, and more prepared than either has been in several years.”
The bulk of the men’s roster will continue racing on Saturday, led by sophomores Cale Allen, Ladd Mercer and Dominic DeSantis, who are all fresh off of season-best races. All three surpassed the 26-minute barrier for 8K for the first time this season at the Greater Louisville Classic, led by Allen’s mark of 25:17.05, and finished in the top-five for the squad. Mercer crossed the line in the team’s fourth spot with a career best of 25:34.92, while DeSantis rounded out the scoring at 25:39.62.
The Boilermakers send five others on the men’s side to Terre Haute with sophomore Charles White and freshmen Stephen Schulz, Robert Stewart, Corey Scott and Steven Stoot. Schulz and Stewart finished under 26 minutes for the first time in their collegiate careers in Louisville, while Scott enters his first race since an impressive season debut at the Great American Legends race.
The Purdue women will race a very limited squad on Saturday, sending just five individuals to Indiana State for the season’s first 6K race. Sophomores Stephanie Bonk and Katie Conrad look to continue their impressive improvements from last weekend’s outing, where Bonk was the team’s No. 3 runner with a time of 18:09.07 and Conrad was fourth on the team with a career-best mark of 18:12.04.
The other three competitors for Saturday’s race will be fellow sophomore Kara Conflenti and freshmen Kelly McCurdy and Erin Czyprynski, who will all race 6K for the first time in their careers. McCurdy turned in an impressive 5K of 18:18.42 at the Greater Louisville Classic, finishing 36th overall and just nine spots back from the team’s top-five.
Saturday’s races are scheduled to start at 12:15 p.m., and results will be available after the completion of the day’s competition at PurdueSports.com.
