Irish top runnners next compete at Pre-National Meet Oct. 16.

Oct. 5, 1999

NOTRE DAME, Ind. - After a year hiatus, the 12th-ranked Notre Dame women's cross country team won the team title at the adidas/Notre Dame Invitational last Friday, Oct. 1 at the Notre Dame Golf Course. The Irish beat then 13th-ranked Missouri for the title with a combined score of 57, 16 less than the Tigers, who had 73. The 20th-ranked men's team had a strong showing against some of the top talent in the nation, finished third behind Michigan and Georgetown, who tied for the meet title with a team score of 81.

adidas/NOTRE DAME INVITATIONAL RECAP: The women's team was once again paced by senior All-American JoAnna Deeter (Glen Ellyn, Ill.). Deeter claimed her third adidas/Notre Dame Invitational title in four appearances in a 5K time of 16:52. The Irish showed off the depth of their roster with strong performances from their top five runners. Senior Alison Klemmer (Troy, Mich.) finished third with a time of 17:21, while freshman Jennifer Handley (Barrie, Ont.) continued her impressive rookie season finishing sixth in a time of 17:36. Senior captain Erin Luby (Inverness, Ill.) finished 17th in 17:55 and fellow classmate Patty Rice (Mishawaka, Ind.), running in her first race of the year, finished 30th in 18:15.

In the men's race, junior Ryan Shay (Central Lake, Mich.) became the first Notre Dame men's runner since Bill Clark in 1964 to win the individual 8K title. Shay outdueled second-place runner Jay Cantin of Michigan by two seconds, completing the course in 23:52. It was Shay's second consecutive individual title this year, going back to the National Catholic Championships, September 17. The men received another top 10 performance by sophomore Luke Watson (Stillwater, Minn.), who placed seventh in 24:10. Sophomore Marc Striowski (Toronto, Ont.) and senior John Dudley (Westwood, Mass.) finished in the top 20 with 16th and 19th-place finishes respectively. Senior Sean McManus (Hernando, Fla.) rounded out the top five runners, giving Notre Dame a team score of 86, just five points behind co-champions Michigan and Georgetown.

IRISH MOVE UP IN THE POLLS: The women's team has steadily moved up the national rankings in 1999. Ranked 22nd in the FinishLynx preseason poll, the Irish moved up to 14th after winning the National Catholic Championships. Following last Friday's meet, women moved up to 12th in the nation.

The men make their first appearance in the top 20 after their third-place finish last Friday. After having not been ranked in the preseason MONDO poll, the Irish are now 20th.

MONDO NCAA DIV. I MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY POLL (10/12):

RK  TEAM (FIRST PLACE VOTES)   POINTS PREV. RANKING
 1. ARKANSAS (14)               398       1
 2. STANFORD (2)                382       2
 3. NORTH CAROLINA STATE        361       3
 4. WISCONSIN                   356       4
 5. COLORADO                    340       5
 6. ARIZONA                     318       7
 7. BYU                         298       6
 8. NORTHERN ARIZONA            282       8
 9. JAMES MADISON               250       9
10. OREGON                      246      10
11. GEORGETOWN                  221      12
12. MICHIGAN                    220      13
13. WEBER STATE                 216      11
14. PROVIDENCE                  198      14
15. PORTLAND                    156      15
16. PRINCETON                   127      19
17. ARIZONA STATE               119      17
18. DARTMOUTH                   106      25
19. UTAH                        102      --
20. NOTRE DAME                   94      --

UPCOMING SCHEDULE: Both of the teams top runners will travel to a the pre-national meet in Bloomington, Ind., on October 16, while other team members are expected to compete in the Central Collegiates in Ypsilanti, Mich., on October 15.

FinishLynx NCAA Div. I Women's XC Poll (10/4)

Rank School (First-Place)    Pts
 1. Stanford (12)            300
 2. Arkansas                 288
 3. BYU                      271
 4. Arizona State            266
 5. Wisconsin                249
 6. Colorado                 238
 7. Georgetown               231
 8. Kansas State             211
 9. Villanova                206
10. Washington               192
11. North Carolina State     177
12. Notre Dame               169
13. Minnesota                157
14. Missouri                 131
15. Arizona                  121
16. Michigan State           103
17. Nebraska                  99
18. North Carolina            79
19. UCLA                      72
20. Providence                64
21. Northern Arizona          51
22. Baylor                    39
23. Florida                   36
24. James Madison             34
25. Texas                     24