TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- The LSU men’s and women’s cross country teams kicked-off their seasons Friday night at the Crimson Classic, with the women’s team finishing eighth and the men’s team finishing 10th.
The host-team Alabama captured both the men’s and women’s titles, with the tenth-ranked men earning 34 points and the women earning 43. Both fields consisted of 16 teams a piece.
“The good thing we’re looking at is that we got our first meet in,” LSU cross country coach Mark Elliottsaid. “We’re looking forward to getting better and preparing for the conference race.”
Leading the LSU women was senior Katie Hamel, who posted a 21st place finish with a time of 18:43.50 over the 5K course.
“Katie ran extremely well,” Elliott said. “I don’t want the team’s position to overshadow her effort; she ran very well, especially from where she came from. She transferred here from Tulane and I want to say that this was one of her better times.”
Sophomore Jenna Henssler and freshman Charlene Lipsey also placed in the top 35, finishing 33rd and 34th respectively. Henssler clocked a 19:13.00, and Lipsey followed with a 19:16.60.
On the men’s side, the Tigers were led by Cullen Doody, who finished 44th with a time of 26:52.30 over the 8K course.
Both the men’s and women’s teams will return home to host the LSU Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 26 at Highland Road Park.
TEAM RESULTS (Top 10 Only)
Men
1. Alabama, 34
2. Tennessee, 55
3. Auburn, 76
4. Georgia Tech, 153
5. Belmont, 156
6. Kennesaw State, 164
7. East Tenn. State, 167
8. Chattanooga, 197
9. Mississippi Valley St., 265
10. LSU, 284
Women
1. Alabama, 43
2. Auburn, 75
3. Tennessee, 88
4. Georgia Tech, 115
5. Samford, 137
6. Chattanooga, 153
7. Kennesaw State, 164
8. LSU, 167
9. Belmont, 254
10. Alabama State, 259
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (Winner plus all LSU competitors)
Men
1, Tyson David, Alabama, 24:25.90. 44, Cullen Doody, 26:52.30. 72, Sean Swanner, 27:50.70. 74,Luke Dessauer, 27:54.60. 77, Frank Bohn, 27:58.40. 79, Roger Cooke, 28:04.60. 81, Paras Shah, 28:08.01. 82, Ken Ehrhardt, 28:12.80. 83, Tim Landry, 28:20.10. 87, Kenneth Schiffman, 28:30.70. 89, Kyle Steele, 28:41.10. 95, Kyle Hecker, 29:06.20.
Women
1, MacKenzie Howe, Kennesaw State, 17:13.40. 21, Katie Hamel, 18:43.50. 33. Jenna Henssler, 19:13.00. 34, Charlene Lipsey, 19:16.60. 45, Laura Carelton, 19:41.30. 49, Amber Abbott, 19:50.90. 58, Kayann Thompson, 20:06.40. 71, Lauren Ybarzabal, 20:34.70. 80, Amal Esmail, 21:03.30. 98,Jessica Deutsch, 23:01.40.