TALLAHASSEE – The Florida men’s cross country team used an 8K victory and course record from sophomore Alex Schanen to finish second to host Florida State, while a pair of Top 10 finishes in the women’s 5K race helped Florida to a fifth-place finish Friday night at the FSU Invitational run at the Apalachee Regional Park.
Schanen finished in 24:45.27 to edge Florida Southern’s Ben Martucci in the men’s 8K race. Junior Michael Anderson (25:05.07) finished eighth, his brother Geoff Anderson (25:29.32) was 15th, freshman Tyler Davidson (25:38.32) was 19th and freshman Erick Montoya (25:47.68) was 22nd for Florida. Because of unattached runners, the Gators’ final point total was 55 points, 14 behind the host Seminoles, who had a fourth-place finish by Justin Harbor and then had its next five runners finish 10th though 14th.
“Alex Schanen ran great and won his first collegiate race, and it’s not easy to win a college cross country race. He set a course record and ran really well,” cross country coach Todd Morgan said. “Michael Anderson had a good run behind Alex.”
In the women’s 5K race, sophomore Amanda Perkins finished third in 17:47.66 and freshman Stephanie Strasser (18:05.64) was 10th as Florida finished with 106 points. Freshman Sarah Davis (18:23.81) finished 14th, redshirt freshman Brittany Koziara (19:12.59) was 35th (31st for team purposes), senior Alison Babb (20:09.68) was 66th (48th) and junior Ashley Usery (22:59.99) was 105th (62nd).
Stephen F. Austin won the women’s race with 45 points, Florida State was second with 82, North Florida third with 88 and South Florida was fourth with 90. North Florida’s Shelby Kittrell was the individual winner in 17:34.65.
“On the women’s side, Mandy Perkins showed big improvement to lead the women’s team and Steph Strasser also had a strong run for us,” Morgan added. “Everybody we brought up to the FSU Invitational ran really well. We had great competition in terms of our athletes competing for a spot on our SEC squad.”
Florida reserved the top half of its men’s and women’s lineups for the Pre-NCAA Invitational in Terre Haute, Ind., Oct. 16. The races begin at 11 a.m.
FLORIDA STATE INVITATIONAL
WOMEN’S 5K
Team scores: 1. Stephen F. Austin 45; 2. Florida State 82; 3. North Florida 88; 4. South Florida 90; 5. Florida 106; 6. Tampa 125; 7. Florida Track Club 167; 8. Troy 207; 9. Florida Southern 266; 10. Fort Valley State 303; 11. Edward Waters 345.
Top 10: 1. Shelby Kittrell (North Florida) 17:34.65; 2. Lauren Smith (Stephen F. Austin) 17:46.26; 3. Amanda Perkins (Florida) 17:47.66; 4. Megan Jenkins (Stephen F. Austin) 17:49.54; 5. Nicole Rozario (South Florida) 17:53.22; 6. Yasmin Smith (South Florida) 17:54.26; 7. Heather Nicolosi (Tampa) 17:55.26; 8. Andrea Palen (Florida State) 18:05.14; 9. Emily Ness (Florida State) 18:05.14; 10. Stephanie Strasser (Florida) 18:05.14.
Florida runners: 3 (3). Amanda Perkins 17:47.77; 10 (10). Stephanie Strasser 18:05.64; 14 (14). Sarah Davis 18:23.81; 35 (31). Brittany Koziara 19:12.59; 66 (48). Alison Babb 20:09.68; 105 (62). Ashley Usery 22:59.99;
MEN’S 8K
Team scores: 1. Florida State 41; 2. Florida 55; 3. Stephen F. Austin 69; 4. Florida Southern 117; 5. North Florida 145; 6. Tampa 170; 7. South Florida 171; 8. Troy 183; 9. Florida Track Club 230; 10. Fort Valley State 330; 11. Edward Waters 335.
Top 10: 1. Alex Schanen (Florida) 24:45.27; 2. Ben Martucci (Florida Southern) 24:48.83; 3. Seth Proctor (unattached) 24:51.03; 4. Justin Harbor (Florida State) 25:01.02; 5. Enock Kirui (Troy) 25:03.70; 6. Kevin Cook (unattached) 25:04.50; 7. Xavier Rodriguez (Stephen F. Austin) 25:04.96; 8. Michael Anderson (Florida) 25:05.07; 9. Dennis Yeats (Stephen F. Austin) 25:08.29; 10. Nicholas Maedel (Florida State) 25:12.85.
Florida runners: 1 (1). Alex Schanen 24:45.27; 8 (6). Michael Anderson 25:05.07; 15 (13). Geofferey Anderson 25:29.32; 19 (16). Tyler Davidson 25:38.32; 22 (19). Erick Montoya 25:47.68.