Men’s Cross Country Wins Western Carolina Invitational

CULOWHEE, N.C. — The Clemson men’s cross country team opened the 1999 season Saturday by winning the Western Carolina Invitational in Cullowhee, NC. The Tigers led the nine-team field with 22 points. Sophomore Jason Meany of Liverpool, NY, led all collegiate runners with a time of 25:38. Georgia placed second with 49 points, and Georgia State was third with 96 points.

Sophomore Ryan Demers (Shapleigh, ME) placed third with a time of 25:59, while freshman Scott Shaw (East Syracuse, NY) finished fourth with a time of 26:01. Senior Steve Alexander (Pickens, SC) was sixth with a time of 26:28. Sophomore Clay Wiggins (Otto, NC) finished eighth at 26:34, and sophomore B.J. Dillard (Simpsonville, SC) placed 15th with a time of 27:00.

Freshman Mike Connelly (Winchester, VA) placed 23rd with a time of 27:38, and freshman Everett Ernst (Columbia, SC) was 26th at 27:44. Sophomore David Abel (Franklin, NC) placed 28th with a time of 27:49, and freshman Peter Lukens (Springfield, VA) rounded out the Tigers, finishing 30th with a time of 27:56.

“We had a couple goals that we wanted to make sure we met,” said Clemson head coach Bob Pollock. “We wanted to win the Invitational, and we wanted to place our top five runners in the top 20. We ended up placing all five in the top eight. We also wanted the time between our first and fifth runner to be 60 seconds or less, and that interval was 56 seconds. I was pleased that we improved upon last year’s efforts where we placed sixth, and our top individual (Meany) was 13th.”

Clemson will compete at the North Carolina Invitational in Chapel Hill, NC, on September 18.