Three cross country individuals and one team from Conference USA will advance to the 2003 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships on Monday, November 24 after standout performances at the NCAA Regionals. Mary Kinyanjui and Ami Butler of 30th-ranked TCU along with USF’s Bente General automatically qualified for the championship meet, while the 28th-ranked Marquette’s women’s squad received an at-large bid to join the national competition at Waterloo, Iowa.

Kinyanjui, Butler, and General placed in the top four of their respective meet to make the cut. Overall, C-USA totaled three top-ten and ten top-25 finishes. Here is a look at how each C-USA team, or representatives of, faired at their respective regional:

Southeast Regional (Greenville, N.C.)

Charlotte - The 49er women finished 13th as a team. Cassie Ficken placed 44th (21:30.30) to lead the 49ers over the 6K course. Tsehaye Dagnachew was next across the finish line with a time of 21:57.40 to place 65th. Andria Craig finished 88th (22:38.30) and Liz Smith placed 116th (23:11.60), while Amelia Slagle was 136th (23:33.20). For the men, Jamil Muhaimin covered the 10K course in 32:38 to place 86th. Andrew Manning finished 119th with a time of 33:15.40.

East Carolina - The women's squad placed 21st, while the men's team finished 20th. Kyle MacKenzie, the 2003 Conference USA Men's Individual Champion, was the Pirates' top finisher with a time of 31:54.70 to place 59th. All-Conference USA performer Caitlin Littlefield recorded ECU's best individual performance during the women's race, placing 61st with a time of 21:53.30.

Louisville - Holly Geers placed 108th, covering the course in 23:02.50. Geers was the lone Cardinal to represent the women’s team. The men placed 14th as a team at the regional. Kyle Bowling led the Cardinals with a time of 31:48.10, placing 55th. Tim Kaiser finished 74th with a time of 32:15.70, while freshman Wes Seacat was 76th (32:18.70). Rounding out the Cardinal finishers were Curtis Persinger (87th), Chris Davis (117th) and Chris Danks (118th).

Great Lakes Regional (Terre Haute, Ind.)

Cincinnati - The men finished 13th as a team. Andy Wietmarschen led the Bearcats, finishing 59th (31:59). Eric Bair was next, placing 78th (32:37) and Mike Smith finished third for Cincinnati in 95th (32:50). The women were one runner short to place as a team but the top-three finishers for UC were Karen Berling, placing 94th (23:01), Jennifer Limle, in 111th (23:13) and Abi Hamrick, finishing 143rd (23:43).

Marquette - Three runners from the women’s squad earned All-Regional honors: Jodi Jakubek who placed 11th with a time of 21:09, Brianna Dahm in 17th (21:20.40) and freshman Heidi Lindeman who placed 21st (21:27.80). The women placed fifth as a team and have received an at-large bid to compete at the NCAA National Championships on Nov. 24. On the men’s side, freshman Jeremy Williams took 70th overall with a time of 32:11.70 and senior Jake Remitz placed 74th overall (32:23.90) to lead the Golden Eagles to a 12th-place finish.

Midwest Regional (Stillwater, Okla.)

DePaul - The women’s team came away with 11th place. Marlene Key led DePaul by finishing 28th overall. Key finished with a time of 22:43.80 while Carrie Moffett placed 35th (23:01.40). Shelley Knight placed 55th and was followed by Olivia Conlon in 72nd place. Knight ran the 6K course in 23:53.20 and Conlon finished with a time of 24:26.80. The men's team placed 17th out of 22 teams. Gavin Kennedy (33:03) led the Blue Demons with a 68th-place finish out of 155 individual runners. Kennedy was followed by Donnie Warner (33:03), Anthony Becknek (33:11) and Rick Britton (33:35). Warner took 69th place while Becknek and Britton were 79th and 94th, respectively.

Saint Louis - The men's team finished 21st at the meet, while the SLU women finished in 24th place. The top runner for the Billikens was Joe Porter who finished in 93rd place, covering the 10K course in 33:34. Senior Brandon Middleton was second for Saint Louis, 125th overall, recording a time of 34:24. Jimmy Holmes rounded out the top three for SLU, placing 137th (35:05). On the women's side, Janelle Decker was the top Billiken runner placing 128th, covering the 6K course in 24:34. Beth Shearman was second for SLU, finishing in 130th place (24:37), and Emily Zimmerman placed 139th (24:52).

South Central Regional (Waco, Texas)

Houston - The men’s team concluded their season with a tie for eighth place. Sophomore Cole Dailey was Houston’s top runner with a 45th-place finish, covering the 10K course in 32:42. Alex Winstel finished in 47th place (32:45) and Maurillio Sanchez placed 55th. (33:10). The women’s team had three individual runners compete, but it wasn’t enough to place as a team. Shawna Florida was the Cougars’ top runner, placing 44th as she completed the 6K course in 22:52. Janay Covington finished in 54th place (23:13), while Terie Littlepage placed 89th (24:22).

TCU - The Horned Frogs women’s squad placed fourth as a team. MARY KINYANJUI captured first place with a time of 20:44 while AMI BUTLER claimed third place after covering the 6K course in 20:57. Both women qualified to compete in the NCAA National Cross Country Championships in Waterloo, Iowa, on Nov. 24. On the men's side, the Frogs placed 15th out of 16 teams. Jackson Langat was TCU's top finisher, placing 28th overall. He covered the 10K distance in 32:00.

South Region (Auburn, Ala.)

Memphis - The Memphis women’s team finished 22nd out of a field of 24 teams. Senior Ali Baker was the Tigers’ top runner placing 100th with a time of 23:35.82 in the 6K race. Mary Claire Dake placed 120th (24:01.88) and was followed by Daniele Riendeau (142nd, 24:31.62), Kara Cassel (155th, 25:17.72), Becca McMahon (158th, 25:23.77), Nora Nemere (161st, 25:28.37) and Michel Wilson (166th, 25:40:63). Meanwhile, Memphis Tiger Adam Didyk placed 30th individually in a field of nearly 200 runners. Didyk ran a 31:19.88 over the 10K course and was the only runner to compete from the Tigers men’s squad.

USF - On the men’s side the Bulls took 11th place out of 21 teams, and placed two runners in the top 25. Adam Chumbley placed 20th in the 10K event with a time of 31:05.53 and Sean Burris was 24th (31:11.03). Both Chumbley and Burris earned All-Region honors for their performance. The women’s team placed three runners in the top 20. Bente General was the Bulls top female finisher running the 6K race in 20:53.57 while placing fourth. Her finish was good enough to receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships in Waterloo, Iowa on November 24. Christa Benton, a 2002 cross-country All-American, claimed 12th place with a time of 21:21:04 while Jessica Hellender finished in 19th place (21:34.56). For their efforts, all three runners - General, Benton, and Hellender - earned All-Region honors.

Southern Miss - The Golden Eagles finished 17th with 416 points. Cassandra Goodson was the top finisher for the Eagles, placing 55th overall with a time of 22:35.91. Lydiah Chepkwony placed 62nd (22:40.16), followed by Becca Wiseman in 91st (23:28.50). Keri White placed 97th (23:37.41), Alisha Edwards finished 111th (23:57.59), Karen Tankersley claimed 122nd (24:10.24) and Liz Palmer placed 136th (24:38.68).

UAB - The Blazers finished in a tie for 11th at the South Regional. Senior Amanda Kara completed her UAB career leading the Blazers with a 31st place finish, her best-ever finish at a regional. Kara completed the 6K course with a time of 21:54.96. Freshman Emry McKay was the next highest finisher for the Blazers, coming in 44th (22:19.27). Freshman Elizabeth Ambrus clocked in at 22:48.90 to place 71st overall. Ambrus was followed by freshman Jennifer Thompson who placed 82nd (23:02.23).

Individual Qualifiers for the NCAA National Cross Country Championships on Nov. 24 at Waterloo, Iowa:

Mary Kinyanjui, TCU
Ami Butler, TCU
Bente General, USF

Teams Receiving an At-Large Bid to the NCAA National Cross Country Championships on Nov. 24 at Waterloo, Iowa:

Marquette (women)