Upcoming Event: Cross Country versus Beehive Invitational on September 12, 2025 at W: 10:00 AM / M: 10:45 AM
W: 10:00 AM / M: 10:45 AM
Cross Country
vs Beehive Invitational
Ute Runners Rank Sixth in Mountain Region
10/22/2008 12:00 AM | Cross Country
Oct. 22, 2008
SALT LAKE CITY - The University of Utah women's cross country team earned a No. 6 ranking in the Mountain Regional ranking from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association on Tuesday. This is the second-highest ranking Ute runners have earned since 1996, when they ranked fifth in the region.
"This is a great culmination of all the hard work our athletes have been putting in," said head coach Kyle Kepler. "When our seniors first started here, we were ranked at the bottom of the list. As our core, they find themselves in an emiable place."
The Utes, whom were previously ranked ninth in the region, earned their new placement after last week's spectacular performance at the NCAA Pre-Nationals Meet hosted by Indiana State in Terre Haute, Ind. The team competed in the White Team Race with 287 runners from 39 different teams across the nation. They placed 26th overall in the race, accumulating 611 points and a top-five finish of 1:50:29. The Utes were only 20 points away from earning a top-20 placement.
The Utes haven't been ranked sixth in the region since 1988. This placement also put the Utes ahead of the 2007 MWC Champions Colorado State. The Rams placed seventh in the region this week, followed by Weber State at No. 8.
Junior Alyssa Abbott stole the show for Utah placing 41st after finishing the 6K in 21:14, Abbott's new personal best.
Chelsea DiGrazia, a senior, earned 60th-place in the competition with a finish time of 21:31, also a new personal best for the runner. Senior Janett Ern came in 144th overall at the Pre-Nationals Meet. Ern finished the course in 22:17, setting a new personal best that was previously 22:46, which she set in September at the Stanford Invite.
"We will continue to work hard and focus on the Mountain West Conference Championships. We are aiming for our best finish possible," said Kepler. "We are certainly proud, but we know that Colorado State and Weber State are very talented and on any given day they can run as good or better than us."
COMING UP
The University of Utah women's cross country team will compete in the Mountain West Conference Championships on November 1, 2008. The meet will be hosted by San Diego State.
Mountain WomenWeek 4 - 10/20/081. Texas Tech3. BYU4. Northern Arizona5. Colorado6. Utah7. Colorado State8. Weber State9. Nevada10. Wyoming11. Southern Utah12. New Mexico State13. Utah State14. Air Force15. Idaho State
Players Mentioned
Distance/CC
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