EKU MEN FINISH 23RD, EASON 42ND AT NCAA CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – The Eastern Kentucky University men’s team finished 23rd while senior Ann Eason placed 42nd in the women’s race of the Division I NCAA Cross Country Championships on Saturday at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course.

The EKU men’s team’s 23rd-place finish is the second-best finish in school history. The Colonels placed 15th in 2013, 24th in 2012 and 26th in 2011.

Senior Ole Hesselbjerg was EKU’s top finisher at the meet, placing 66th out of 246 runners with a 10K time of 31:14.9. Sophomore Ambrose Maritim was second on the team and 115th overall with a time of 31:39.7.

Sophomore Luka Ndungu and freshman Ronald Korir provided key performances for the Colonels. Ndungu was 134th with a time of 31:50.7, while Korir finished 179th in 32:13.3.

Sophomore Amos Kosgey rounded out EKU’s scoring five with a 193rd-place finish in a time of 32:30.2.

Freshman Jakob Abrahamsen (225th / 33:04.6) and senior Sean Vandermosten (237th / 33:41.8) also competed for the Colonels on Saturday.

Eastern (579 points) was edged by Southern Utah (578) by one point at the meet. The Colonels defeated the likes of Michigan State, Tulsa, Texas, UTEP, Arkansas, Ole Miss, Furman and Florida State.

Eason finished two spots shy of earning All-America honors in the women’s race, finishing 42nd out of 253 competitors. The senior from Lexington covered the 6K course in a time of 20:48.0.

Eason was only the second EKU woman and seventh Ohio Valley Conference woman ever to compete at the NCAA Championships.