You reached this page through the archive. Click here to return to the archive.

Note: This article is over a year old and information contained in it may no longer be accurate. Please use the contact information in the lower-left corner to verify any information in this article.

Ole men finish fifth at Regions

Lars Finanger
November 12, 2001

The black and gold harriers raced to a fifth place finish at the Midwest Regional Championships held Saturday in Grinnell, Iowa. The finish sent the Oles home without one of the four-team bids to the November 17 NCAA Championships held in Rock Island, Ill. However, two individual Oles did qualify, Andrew Cole (Sr., North Mankato, Minn.) and Kelly Fulton (Fy. Billings, Mont.).

St. Thomas continued their domination of the Midwest Region, capturing the team title by outpacing runner-up Nebraska Wesleyan. Wartburg and Hamline claimed the third and fourth spots to Nationals. St. Thomas once again finished with their one-two punch, as junior Brian Preus out-kicked teammate Nick Maddux down the homestretch to claim individual title honors.

Andrew Cole and Kelly Fulton led the Oles. Cole tore through the course and crossed the line in 25:46 to claim 12th place, and Fulton hit the chute in 26:14 for 20th place. Despite not qualifying as a team, Cole and Fulton received two of the six individual qualifying spots for Nationals.

Robert Hillard (Jr., Columbia, Mo.) finished in 26:23 in 23rd place to lead the hoard of remaining Oles. Malcolm Richards (Fy, Minneapolis, Minn.) ran as the Oles fourth harrier and cruised over the terrain in 26:28 for 30th place. Mark Sullivan (Jr., West Bend, Wis.) crossed the line in 26:45 for 37th place and rounded out the top five scorers. Christopher Coffey (Jr., Dubuque, Iowa) followed closely behind in 26:54 for the 43rd spot, and Peder Arneson (So, Montevideo, Minn.) rounded out the Oles varsity seven with his 27:12, 54th place finish.

Cole, Fulton, Hillard, and Richards received All-Regional recognition for finishing in the races top 35. Cole and Fulton will race at NCAA Championships at noon on Saturday, November 17, held in Rock Island, Ill.

Contact Judy Stromayer at 507-786-3315 or stromaye@stolaf.edu.