Deacons to Race at Brooks Paul Short Run
10/1/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Oct. 1, 2009
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The Deacons will travel to Bethlehem, Pa., to compete in the second meet of the season at the Brooks Paul Short Run, hosted by Lehigh University at the Goodman Campus. Both the men's and women's teams will compete in the Gold Division on Friday, Oct. 2, with the men's 8-kilometer event beginning at 11 a.m. and the women's 6K following at 11:45 a.m.
This meet is one of the largest that the Deacons will compete in all season with more than 40 teams, including multiple top-ranked teams, scheduled for each Gold Division race. In the men's competition, No. 7 Iona College, No. 19 NC State and No. 30 Princeton will face off against the Deacons.
The men's race will feature freshman Devin Huizenga for the first time in a Wake Forest uniform. Additionally, junior Greg Billington will be racing for the first time this cross country season after returning from a successful trip abroad to represent the United States in the 2009 Gold Coast ITU Triathlon World Championships. Billington won his first individual title, beating a field of 270 runners, at the 2008 Brooks Paul Short Run White Division 8K last year.
Along with Billington and Huizenga, Garret Drogosch, Jeremy Fisico, Sam Foster, Howard Graves, Paul Loeser, Keaton Morgan and Ben Morrow are slated to run on Friday.
Last year, the men's team placed 6th of 41 teams in its division.
For the women, the team returns to action after finishing second at the Virginia Tech Alumni Invitational on Sept. 18. Led by defending ACC Cross Country Performer of the Week sophomore Anna Nosenko, the Deacons will compete against a total of 41 other teams in the Gold Division, including No. 4 West Virginia and No. 5 Villanova. Currently, Wake Forest is ranked fourth in the Southeast Region and is receiving votes in the national poll.
Running for the Deacons will be Marley Burns, Suzie Clinchy, Caitlin Crawford, Whitney Curry, Casey Fowler, Claire Hagler, Anna Nosenko, Dina Nosenko and Kim Vos.
The women's team did not compete in the Paul Short Run last year.
In what has now turned into an all-day event featuring thousands of cross country teams, the Brooks Paul Short Run began in 1969, when Lehigh coach John Covert brought seven teams together to race in honor of the late Paul Short. Short had served as Lehigh's business manager of athletics and was a known cross country enthusiast.
This year, the 36th annual Brooks Paul Short Run will be the largest in its history with another college race added to the schedule, bringing the total to 14 races. More than 5,000 collegiate and high school runners are scheduled to run on Friday.
Players Mentioned
