Deland, FL – The Stetson Invitational provided an encouraging platform for the St. Thomas men's and women's cross country teams as they enter their final meet of the season. After a trying season, where all Bobcats have shown improvement, they now conclude their 2008 campaign November 8th at the Sun Conference Championships in Hardeville, South Carolina.
At the Stetson meet, freshman Noralis Lambert and senior Koely Kempisty both posted their best times of the season, with Lambert eventually finishing with a time of 24:52, and Kempisty close behind at 25:08. Coaches Jeff Norman and Sam Jacobsen said they were pleased with both individuals' performances, and said they did a stellar job of pacing themselves throughout. These two runners have developed a friendly rivalry over the season, with Kempisty getting the better of the early season matches, and Lambert breaking through to finish first on the team the past two races.
The other women who finished were sophomore Monica Garcia (28:44), freshman Jenny Rodriguez (30:01), and sophomore Jen Sanchez (30:12). The youth of the team is evident, and Norman and Jacobsen hope for a strong showing at the Sun Conference meet to continue the units' growth for next year.
The men only had four finishers and did not record a team score, but Willie Bankston continued to record great showing with a 69th place finish and a time of 33:25 despite continued knee troubles. The coaches said he should be 'healthy come Conference' and expect him to again pace the men. Michael Jordan (37:25), Antonio Hurtado (38:46), and Ricardo Vera (42:42) rounded out the finishers for the men.
The two teams now have two weeks to prepare for the Conference Championships and Jacobsen described the training plan to be 'a grand' but to expect many personal bests to be set in the season finale.
