The Seattle University cross country team performed well at the 2011 Emerald City Open Saturday morning at Lower Woodland Park, a notoriously hilly course.
In the women's six-kilometer race, Hannah Mittelstaedt (Maple Valley, Wash.) was the top Redhawk finisher, finishing fifth in a time of 23:47, over a minute faster than her time in last year's event. Kelton Sears (Maple Valley, Wash.) crossed the finish line first for the Seattle U guys in the men's eight-kilometer event, finishing fifth overall with a time of 26:56, 20 seconds quicker than his time in last year's race.
Miles Hille (Woodinville, Wash.) put together his best race to date, crossing the finish line in 12th place with a time of 27:33, followed by Collin Overbay (Spokane, Wash.) in 14th place in 27:46. Ryan Dennison (Pacifica, Calif.) crossed the finish line in 17th place in 27:54, with Graham Kinzel-Grubbs (Portland, Ore.) right behind him in 19th place in 27:55 and Jeff Baklund (Auburn, Wash.) finishing in 21st place with a time of 28:03.
Kevin Kopetz (Derry, N.H.) crossed the finish line in 23rd place with a time of 28:11, just ahead of Baxter Arguinchona (Spokane, Wash.) in 24th place in 28:20. Chris Auld (Eugene, Ore.) finished in 28th place in 28:34, just ahead of twin brother Dan Auld (Eugene, Ore.), who posted a time of 28:41 for 29th place.
Finishing in 33rd place was Keenan Clinch (Sammamish, Wash.) with a time of 29:15, followed by David Strand (Seattle, Wash.) in 34th place in 29:20 and Peter VanNuland (Newcastle, Wash.) in 37th place with a final time of 29:29.
"We need to have a closer grouping of our top five towards the faster end of the range between our top runner and our seventh runner if we want to achieve our season goals," head coach Trisha Steidl said. "However, I am pleased with today's effort, and I know they will work to continue improving over the second half of the season."
For the Seattle U women after Mittelstaedt, Sarah Bolce (Sacramento, Calif.) finished in seventh place in 23:55, almost a minute faster than last year's time, while Jennifer Stolle(Seattle, Wash.) finished in eighth place with a time of 23:57. Running unattached, Kimberly Pugliese (Miliani, Hawaii) crossed the finish line in ninth place in 24:01.
Lauren Hammerle (Seattle, Wash.) finished the race in 11th place with a time of 25:13, followed closely by Sophie Curatilo (Honolulu, Hawaii) in 12th place in 25:22. Ashley Dalton (Bellingham, Wash.) finished in 14th place in 25:41, just ahead of teammate Meghan Arigo (San Luis Obispo, Calif.), who finished in 15th place in 25:42.
Amy Tolentino (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.) crossed the finish line in 21st place with a time of 26:50, followed by Haley Kruell (Portland, Ore.) in 25th place in 27:32. Mary Thompson (Simi Valley, Calif.) posted a time of 28:12 for a 27th-place finish, and Meghan Manwill (Eugene, Ore.) finished in 28th place in 28:22.
"I am extremely happy with how the women performed today, especially over a difficult course like this one. This year's top seven is faster at this point in the season than last year's top runners were. With this much depth, we can be more competitive heading into the rest of the season," said Steidl.
Meanwhile, at the Bill Dellinger Invitational hosted by the University of Oregon at the Springfield Country Club in Springfield, Ore., Erik Barkhaus (Whitefish Bay, Wis.) ran unattached and finished 31st in a time of 24:36. He competed against runners from schools such as Oregon, Wisconsin, Southern Utah, Idaho, UC Riverside, UC Irvine, Wichita State, Cal State Fullerton, and Portland State.
Those who did not finish in the top seven within the team will head to Oregon City, Ore., for the Mike Hodges Invitational, hosted by Clackamas Community College Friday, Oct. 14 beginning at 3:30 p.m. That will begin a stretch of three races in three weeks, with the Beaver Classic Saturday, Oct. 22, serving as the team's final qualifier for the Great West Conference Championships Saturday, Oct. 29, in North Dakota.