University of Memphis Athletics
Saturday, September 26
Memphis, Tenn.
8:30 am CT
University of Memphis
at
Rhodes College Invitational
Women's Cross Country Sweeps Team, Individual Titles Saturday
Sep 26, 2015 | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country
Men place third at Rhodes College Invitational.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Make it a clean sweep for the University of Memphis women's cross country team at Saturday's Rhodes College Invitational.
Junior Martina Rodriguez Sala won the women's individual crown and led the Tigers to the women's team crown. Memphis had all five women's runners finish in the top-30, as the Tigers edged out UT Martin by three points for the team championship (UofM 75, UTM 78).
The Tigers men's team placed third behind Arkansas State and Rhodes College, but Memphis competed without two of its top-three runners due to injuries. Senior Corentin Louis was the men's top finisher, crossing the line in fourth place.
The Memphis women's squad defended its 2014 Rhodes College Invitational title. The Tigers women now have won the Rhodes College Invitational four of the past five years, winning the crown in 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2015. The squad placed third in 2013.
"It's always great to win," said head coach Kevin Robinson. "This was a close race and highly competitive. We were able to get the job done today, and I'm really proud of them."
Rodriguez Sala won the women's 6k individual title in a time of 21:15.85. Her time was a personal best at the Rhodes College Invitational, shaving over a minute off last year's time of 22:26.2.
Rodriguez Sala is the first Memphis women's runner to claim the Rhodes College Invitational crown since Louisa Lingley did so in 2012.
"Martina did a phenomenal job today," Robinson said. "This is her best performance on this course. She continues to improve each week."
The Tigers women's team had three other runners place in the top-20. Junior Abigail Tankersley, a transfer from Alabama, was the Tigers second finisher in 14th (23:01.72), followed by sophomores Chelsea Ladd in 16th (23:17.04) and Megan Briley in 18th (23:20.06). Sophomore Meghan Christensen (26th; 23:46.71) rounded out Memphis' top-five finishers.
"Our women closed the gap a little behind Martina, but we're still missing Kristen (Adams)," said Robinson. "When Kristen gets back to full strength and as the others continue to improve, this team will do well in future races."
Despite running without two of the squad's top-three runners, the Memphis men posted the program's fifth-straight, top-three team finish at the event. The Tigers won three-straight Rhodes College Invitational titles from 2011-13 and placed second in 2014.
"Overall, our guys performed at a higher level than we did in our first two meets," Robinson said. "But, not having Stephen (Tankersley) and Diego (Lara Delgado) hurt our team score. I'm proud of our effort today."
For the second-consecutive week, Louis set his personal-best 8k time in a Memphis uniform. Louis posted a time of 26:01.7 and placed fourth. His Saturday performance shaved over 35 seconds off his time of 26:38.8 set at last week's Commodore Classic.
"Corentin ran a smart race today," said Robinson. "He was a little conservative early, but he put himself in a position to close well at the end."
Sophomores Brock Ballard and James Durkin set personal 8k bests Saturday. Durkin was the second Tiger to cross the finish line, coming in 14th in a time of 26:40.3. Durkin's time Saturday was eight seconds better than his previous best of 26:48.4, which he ran at last year's Rhodes College Invitational. Ballard placed 18th in a personal-best time of 26:44.1. His previous best 8k time was 26:44.51 at the 2014 Commodore Classic.
The Memphis men's squad ran without the services of Tankersley and Lara Delgado due to injuries. Lara Delgado was the Tigers' second finisher in the season-opening Brooks Twilight Classic Sept. 5, and Tankersley was the squad's second finisher in the Sept. 19 Commodore Classic.
After running back-to-back weekends, the Tigers take a couple of weeks off from competition before returning to action Oct. 16 at the Crimson Classic in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
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Memphis Individual Results
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Women (top 5 count in team score) – 1st (score of 75)
1.           Martina Rodriguez Sala                 21:15.85
14.         Abigail Tankersley             23:01.72
16.         Chelsea Ladd                 23:17.04
18.         Megan Briley                 23:20.06
26.         Meghan Christensen                     23:46.71
30.         Melinda Murdock              23:53.76
38.         Lauren Wheeler               24:15.02
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Men (top 5 count in team score) – 3rd (score of 113)
4.           Corentin Louis                26:01.7
14.         James Durkin                26:40.3
18.         Brock Ballard                 26:44.1
34.         Godfrey Fayne Jr.             27:15.7
43.         Kaleb Simington              27:36.2
49.         Brandon Keys                27:52.5
91.         Colby Caldwell               29:24.1
Junior Martina Rodriguez Sala won the women's individual crown and led the Tigers to the women's team crown. Memphis had all five women's runners finish in the top-30, as the Tigers edged out UT Martin by three points for the team championship (UofM 75, UTM 78).
The Tigers men's team placed third behind Arkansas State and Rhodes College, but Memphis competed without two of its top-three runners due to injuries. Senior Corentin Louis was the men's top finisher, crossing the line in fourth place.
The Memphis women's squad defended its 2014 Rhodes College Invitational title. The Tigers women now have won the Rhodes College Invitational four of the past five years, winning the crown in 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2015. The squad placed third in 2013.
"It's always great to win," said head coach Kevin Robinson. "This was a close race and highly competitive. We were able to get the job done today, and I'm really proud of them."
Rodriguez Sala won the women's 6k individual title in a time of 21:15.85. Her time was a personal best at the Rhodes College Invitational, shaving over a minute off last year's time of 22:26.2.
Rodriguez Sala is the first Memphis women's runner to claim the Rhodes College Invitational crown since Louisa Lingley did so in 2012.
"Martina did a phenomenal job today," Robinson said. "This is her best performance on this course. She continues to improve each week."
The Tigers women's team had three other runners place in the top-20. Junior Abigail Tankersley, a transfer from Alabama, was the Tigers second finisher in 14th (23:01.72), followed by sophomores Chelsea Ladd in 16th (23:17.04) and Megan Briley in 18th (23:20.06). Sophomore Meghan Christensen (26th; 23:46.71) rounded out Memphis' top-five finishers.
"Our women closed the gap a little behind Martina, but we're still missing Kristen (Adams)," said Robinson. "When Kristen gets back to full strength and as the others continue to improve, this team will do well in future races."
Despite running without two of the squad's top-three runners, the Memphis men posted the program's fifth-straight, top-three team finish at the event. The Tigers won three-straight Rhodes College Invitational titles from 2011-13 and placed second in 2014.
"Overall, our guys performed at a higher level than we did in our first two meets," Robinson said. "But, not having Stephen (Tankersley) and Diego (Lara Delgado) hurt our team score. I'm proud of our effort today."
For the second-consecutive week, Louis set his personal-best 8k time in a Memphis uniform. Louis posted a time of 26:01.7 and placed fourth. His Saturday performance shaved over 35 seconds off his time of 26:38.8 set at last week's Commodore Classic.
"Corentin ran a smart race today," said Robinson. "He was a little conservative early, but he put himself in a position to close well at the end."
Sophomores Brock Ballard and James Durkin set personal 8k bests Saturday. Durkin was the second Tiger to cross the finish line, coming in 14th in a time of 26:40.3. Durkin's time Saturday was eight seconds better than his previous best of 26:48.4, which he ran at last year's Rhodes College Invitational. Ballard placed 18th in a personal-best time of 26:44.1. His previous best 8k time was 26:44.51 at the 2014 Commodore Classic.
The Memphis men's squad ran without the services of Tankersley and Lara Delgado due to injuries. Lara Delgado was the Tigers' second finisher in the season-opening Brooks Twilight Classic Sept. 5, and Tankersley was the squad's second finisher in the Sept. 19 Commodore Classic.
After running back-to-back weekends, the Tigers take a couple of weeks off from competition before returning to action Oct. 16 at the Crimson Classic in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Â
Memphis Individual Results
Â
Women (top 5 count in team score) – 1st (score of 75)
1.           Martina Rodriguez Sala                 21:15.85
14.         Abigail Tankersley             23:01.72
16.         Chelsea Ladd                 23:17.04
18.         Megan Briley                 23:20.06
26.         Meghan Christensen                     23:46.71
30.         Melinda Murdock              23:53.76
38.         Lauren Wheeler               24:15.02
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Men (top 5 count in team score) – 3rd (score of 113)
4.           Corentin Louis                26:01.7
14.         James Durkin                26:40.3
18.         Brock Ballard                 26:44.1
34.         Godfrey Fayne Jr.             27:15.7
43.         Kaleb Simington              27:36.2
49.         Brandon Keys                27:52.5
91.         Colby Caldwell               29:24.1
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
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