Mississippi State’s cross country team finished 10th at the Notre Dame Invitational Friday evening in South Bend, Ind. Sophomore Meggan Hodge finished eighth overall, running the 5K trek on the Burke Memorial Golf Course in 17:48, her fastest time as a collegiate and the 14th fastest time in MSU history. She has now led the Bulldogs in eight straight races and in nine of her ten races as a collegiate.
“There was a torrential downpour before the race today,” said head coach Al Schmidt. “It made the course extremely tough, but as a team, we ran a great race. We are really pleased with our showing.”
Sophomore Tiffany McWilliams placed 27th overall (18:17) after slipping towards the end of the race on the slick ground. This also ranked as the Red Bay, Ala., native’s top time in her career as a Bulldog.
Freshman Zita Magloire (19:04) crossed the line next for MSU, ranking 98th overall. Senior Ronni Rudolphi (19:11), a Moss Point native, finished in
109th position. Freshman Jennifer McPherson (19:20) came in 119th place.
Sophomore Trina Hobyan (19:30) took 130th place, while freshmen Michelle Kinney (19:41) and Mina Thorstenson broke the finish line 147th and 148th, respectively. Sophomore Cassie Hanan (20:11) placed 179th overall.
Stanford, the nation’s second-ranked team, took the team title with 21 points. Eighteenth-ranked Wisconsin finished in second, with the third-ranked host Notre Dame placing third. The Cardinal had the top three individuals, with sophomore Sara Bei winning that title in 16:48.
MSU has next weekend off before heading back to the state of Indiana for the Pre-National Meet in Terra Haute, Ind., on Saturday, Oct. 19.