Cross Country: Bland, Dalzot Place at USA Trials
February 12, 2007 03:37 PM | General
February 12, 2007
BOULDER, Colo. – West Virginia University freshmen Keri Bland and Maria Dalzot placed in the top 30 at the USA Cross Country Championship on Saturday, Feb. 10, in Boulder, Colo.
Bland’s eighth place finish (22:39) places her in a sectional pool for both the World Championships and the North American Championships.
“This race is the toughest cross country race in the country, bringing together the finest runners to decide who will represent America in the World Championships,” says second year coach Sean Cleary. “The rarified air of Boulder is very, very rough on the lungs, but the girls still preformed amazingly.”
Bland, a Fairview, W.Va., native, now has the possibility of racing for Team USA at the IAAF World Cross Country Championship in Mombasa, Kenya, on March 24, or at the North America, Central American & Caribbean (NACAC) Cross Country Championships in Clermont, Fla., later this year. Both Bland and Cleary will be informed later this week if she was selected for either team.
Dalzot, a Morgantown, W.Va., native, placed 23rd (23:37) in the 8 kilometer race.
Freshman Marie Louise Asselin and volunteer coach Rebecca Stallwood have already been chosen to represent Team Canada.
“Keri and Maria represented WVU and the state of West Virginia with great pride,” says Cleary. “I’m very proud for both of them.”
