WVU Takes Third at Paul Short Run

Saturday, October 1

Bethlehem, Pa.

11:45 a.m.

West Virginia University

Paul Short Run

forsey-jillian-main.jpg

October 01, 2016 04:56 PM | Cross Country

MORGANTOWN, W.VA. – The West Virginia University cross country team placed third in the College Women's Gold 6k race at the Paul Short Run in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, hosted by Lehigh, on Saturday.

Results

Out of 45 teams, the Mountaineers finished third with a team score of 127. Teams that finished in the top-five were Yale in first (97), Georgetown in second (119), West Virginia and Penn in third (127) and Florida in fifth (175).

Three nationally ranked teams competed in the race, including two in the Mid-Atlantic Region: No. 19 Georgetown and No. 22 Penn.

In a field of nearly 400 runners, West Virginia posted three top-18 finishes with numerous season- and career-best times on the Goodman Cross Country Course. Redshirt junior Jillian Forsey crossed the finish line first for the Mountaineers, placing fourth with a season-best time of 20:14. Redshirt junior Maggie Drazba followed in 15th place with a career-best time of 20:27 while classmate Amy Cashin took 18th in a career-best time 20:32.

“Today was a very good performance for us,” said coach Sean Cleary. “The weather and course cooperated. I was very happy with the commitment of the group today. We got out competitively and finished with some of the finest running of their lives. Normally we are in a heavy training phase at this point and the season and the results reflect that. I was a little nervous coming into today's meet as we continued the tradition of hard work this week. Clearly they are rounding into shape. We need to enjoy the results before putting them behind us. We have more work to do to be properly prepared for the championships.”

Other Mountaineer finishers were seniors Megan Yuan in 32nd (20:42), Brianna Kerekes in 58th (20:57) and junior Brynn Harshbarger in 118th (21:33), all running career best or season-best times.

The last time the Mountaineers competed at the Paul Short Run was 2013, when they finished eighth out of 47 teams.

The regular season opened with the Texas Tech Invitational on Sept. 8, where WVU claimed the team victory Forsey won the race in a field of 70 runners. Select Mountaineers also competed at the Spiked Shoe Invitational on Sept. 10, placing fifth as a team.

In two weeks, the Mountaineers will race at the Penn State Nationals on Oct. 14, in State College, Pennsylvania.

For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUCrossCountry on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.