LOUISVILLE, KY. -- The Trine University men's cross country team placed 12th overall at the University of Louisville Cross Country Classic in Louisville, Ky.
The Thunder ended the event with a team score of 325 points in the men's "Silver 8k" to finish 12th of 40 teams. North Central (Ill.) College ended up as the team champions with 85 points and was followed by John Hopkins (Md.) University in second place with 116 points. Otterbein (Ohio) University was third with 127 points.
Junior Derek Miller (Shipshewana, Ind./Westview) recorded the top individual time for the Thunder in the 8k event of 25:07.0 which put him in 33rd place overall among a field of 276 runners. Fellow junior Jack Beakas (Auburn, Ind./DeKalb) finished four spots back of Miller in 37th place after completing the course in a time of 25:13.7.
Junior Neil O'Brien (Whiteland, Ind./Roncalli) was the next Trine competitor to cross the finish line and ran a time of 25:41.0 to come in 67th place overall. Senior Villis Vuskalns (Indianapolis, Ind./Beech Grove) was fourth on the team, and 84th overall, after posting a time of 25:51.4.
Juniors Levi Neuzerling (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) and Harrison Korkos (Rochester, Ind./Rochester) rounded out the field for Trine with Neuzerling recording a mark of 26:10.6 which put him in 104th place and Korkos a time of 26:24.7 to finish in 129th place.
In addition, three other runners competed for Trine in the men's "Blue 8k." Sophomore Brandon Sill (Pekin, Ind./Eastern) recorded the top individual time for the Thunder in that race of 27:21.1 and was 208th out of 515 total runners. Also competing were sophomore Will Huffman (Greenfield, Ind./Eastern Hancock) and freshman Skyler Schrope (Greenfield, Ind./Eastern Hancock). Huffman turned in a time of 27:43.5, while Schrope clipped the tape in a time of 28:15.7, respectively.
"The men ran fantastic!" said Head Coach Zach Raber. "This race was the Pre National race and we had five of our top seven guys run personal bests. Derek Miller led the way with Jack Beakas very close behind. If we continue to close the gap between our No. 1 - 5 runners, then we'll have a great opportunity to beat some tough teams down the stretch. This was our best race of the season so far."
Trine will next travel to Oberlin, Ohio to compete in the Oberlin College Inter-Regional Rumble on Saturday, Oct. 19. The men's race is scheduled to begin at 11:15 a.m.