Sept. 17, 2011
ROCK HILL, S.C. — The South Carolina cross country team traveled up I-77 to Winthrop on Saturday to race in their second meet of the season. On an unseasonably cool day under a cloudy sky and temps in the high 50s, the team depth helped the Gamecocks keep their unbeaten streak alive for another week.
When the dust had settled, South Carolina won the meet with 43 points, with Davidson finishing second with 51 points. The win marks the Gamecocks’ second straight victory and their third straight Winthrop Invitational title.
Senior captain Beatrice Biwott fought the entire 5K race with an older, unattached runner, Carol Kirby. The two runners traded the lead several times during the race, trying to break each other. Biwott had made a 10-meter gap with 400 to go. However, Kirby had the better sprint finish, as she passed Biwott with 100 to go for the victory. Biwott’s time of 17:36 was 25 seconds faster than her winning time at last years race. It is also just three seconds off of her 5K cross country PR.
“I was really happy with the way Beatrice ran,” South Carolina coach Stan Rosenthal said. “It was her second best time ever. It was just her first race of the year, and that was really good start.”
Coach Rosenthal held out No. 3 runner Scola Jepngetich, as he depended on the team’s depth to carry the load. At the start, sophomores Liz Locke and Penny Boswell, the normal No. 2 and 4 runners, respectively, raced in the lead group, with Biwott and Kirby 50 meters up after one half mile. The hilly course took its toll on both, as they climbed up to fourth and fifth just before two miles and then faded over the last mile of the race. Locke ended up in 12th place overall, while Boswell finished 15th.
The large Gamecock second group was 10 seconds back at the mile and steadily moved up over the final two miles of the race. Senior captain Nicole Rheinlander led the way. Following in her wake was senior Sara Hartley, freshman Meredith Mill, junior Jessica Hartman, freshman Sarah Pellegrini and junior Megan Rother. During the last mile, Rheinlander, Hartley and Mill moved into scoring position, placing 11th, 10th and 13th overall and second, third and fifth for the team. Hartley and Mill both ran to new PR’s, with Hartley finishing in 18:49 and Mill just missing the 18s, running 19:00.
“Sara Hartley and Meredith Mill both had big PR’s,” Rosenthal said. “Those two did really well. In the scheme of things, those two made a difference in the win. That is one of our strengths is our depth. We do have pretty good depth as far as the back end.”
Next week the team flies to Minnesota for the Griak Invitational, where they will line up against a field that includes nine nationally ranked teams and 10 more regionally ranked teams in the field of 26.
“The big thing about going to Minnesota is it will help us prepare for the (Southeastern Conference Championship) because the course is very similar,” Rosenthal said. “It will also help us prepare for the first round of NCAA because the field is similar. As a team, it will be difficult for us. For individuals it should be a good experience for them to prepare them for the SEC and the NCAA meets.”
