Sept. 29, 2010
MADISON, Wisc. - Texas A&M cross country returns to action this Saturday, Oct. 2, as they compete in the second annual Wisconsin adidas Invitational. The women's race, covering 6,000 meters, starts at 11 a.m. while the men's race, covering 8,000 meters, begins at 11:45 a.m.
This weekend the Aggie squads will test themselves among a field of 20 teams, 13 of which are nationally ranked, that represent the Big East, Big 10, Big 12, Ivy League and SEC. Texas A&M will travel with a crew of nine men and nine women.
The previous outing for the Aggies occurred two weeks ago at the Crimson Classic, where the A&M women won the team title by four points over host Alabama. Meanwhile, the Aggie men placed third in team scoring. In South Central region rankings the A&M men remain No. 3 behind Arkansas and Texas while the Aggie women are No. 6.
Katherine Devlin, who has led A&M in the New Mexico and Alabama meets, headlines a developing Aggie women's team that will include Sophie Blake, Itzel Cetina, Colbea Harris, Amanda Jenkins, Kasey McNorton, Haley Parsons, Natosha Rogers and Gabby Salazar.
Last season at the Wisconsin meet Cetina, Rogers and Devlin were the 2-3-4 finishers for A&M. Jenkins and McNorton were the sixth and eighth runners for the Aggies. In team scoring Texas A&M placed 10th, one spot ahead of host Wisconsin.
The Aggie men, led by MacLean O'Donnell in the first two meets of the season, will compete with a crew of C.J. Brown, Chad Brown, Ryan Snapp and Jimmy Welin.
Burnett was the fourth Aggie runner on last year's team when A&M placed seventh at the Wisconsin meet. C.J. Brown and Welin were the number seven and eight finishers. Those are the only three Aggie runners making a return visit to this meet.
Host Wisconsin is ranked No. 6 nationally in the men's poll and No. 26 in the women's poll. The adidas Invitational will feature a challenging meet on the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course at University Ridge. The manicured course is very spectator friendly, offering numerous options for fans to view various stages of the race. It will also serve as the site for the Big 10 Championships in late October.
The sixth-ranked Badgers host a men's field that includes eight teams ranked among the top 30 in the recent national poll. The women's field has five programs ranked among the top 30 topped by No. 7 Florida.
Ranked schools in the men's field include: No. 6 Wisconsin, No. 11 Syracuse, No. 16 Oklahoma, No. 18 Michigan State, No. 20 Providence, No. 23 Princeton, No. 24 Georgetown, and No. 25 Indiana. Ohio State and North Carolina are receiving votes for inclusion in the USTFCCCA national poll.
Ranked women's teams include: No. 7 Florida, No. 11 Syracuse, No. 20 Michigan State, No. 22 Michigan and No. 29 North Carolina. Nebraska and Indiana are also receiving votes in the poll.
Syracuse is the men's defending team champion. Duke won the women's team title last season, but does not return.
Another Big 12 school competing in the meet is Kansas. Other programs in the adidas Invitational include Air Force, Eastern Michigan, Illinois, Marquette, Purdue, and Wisconsin-La Crosse.