Keith Bechtol Leads Team in 26th Place
TERRE HAUTE, IN - No. 22 William and Mary men's cross country competed this afternoon at the NCAA Pre-Nationals in Terre Haute, IN. Racing against 12 of the top-30 teams in the nation in the 8,000m Blue Race, the Tribe finished in 18th place with 416 points. No. 6 Colorado won the Blue Race with 63 points, ahead of runner-up No. 11 Cal Poly with 165. Also competing in the race were No. 4 Iona, No. 7 Georgetown, No. 10 Butler, No. 13 Air Force, No. 15 Arizona State, No. 20 Indiana, No. 23 Miami (OH), No. 26 Georgia, No. 28 Washington and No. 29 Central Michigan. New Mexico's Matt Gonzales won the race with his time of 23:47.2, ahead of Colorado's Brent Vaughn (23:48.1).Sophomore Keith Bechtol (Alexandria, VA) led the Green and Gold with an impressive showing, finishing in 26th place against the top runners in the nation by clocking a 24:35.2. Sophomore Jason Schoener (Grand Blanc, MI) was the second-highest Tribe finisher on the day, claiming 84th with his pace of 25:08.5. Senior Jeff Hedley (Virginia Beach, VA) and freshman Ian Fitzgerald (Glenshaw, PA) followed closely behind Schoener, placing 94th and 97th, respectively. Sophomore Adam Tenerowicz (Blackstone, MA) rounded out the scoring five for the College in 115th place.
In the 8,000m open race, senior Charlie Hurt (Charlottesville, VA) led the Tribe in 18th place.
The Tribe has two weeks off before it aims for its fifth-straight conference title at the CAA Championship on October 30 in New Market, VA.
Top-5 Teams = Blue Race 1. No. 6 Colorado 63 2. No. 11 Cal Poly 165 3. No. 7 Georgetown 172 4. No. 15 Arizona State 179 5. No. 13 Air Force 216 18. No. 22 William and Mary 416 Top 5 Individuals = Blue Race: Place Individual Team Time 1 Matt Gonzales New Mexico 23:47.2 2 Brent Vaughn Colorado 23:48.1 3 Benson Chesang Kansas 23:54.6 4 Bret Schoolmeester Colorado 23:57.5 5 Sean Jefferson Indiana 24:10.4 Other W&M Individuals = Blue Race 26 Keith Bechtol W&M 24:35.2 84 Jason Schoener W&M 25:08.5 94 Jeff Hedley W&M 25:12.3 97 Ian Fitzgerald W&M 25:12.9 115 Adam Tenerowicz W&M 25:23.5 134 Matt Keally W&M 25:33.8 140 David Murphy W&M 25:38.1 Top 5 Individuals = Open Race: 1 Josh Mcadams Brigham Young 24:49.9 2 David Vidal Stanford 24:51.1 3 Lauren Jespersen Stanford 24:56.6 4 Payton Batliner Colorado 24:59.0 5 Austin Baillie Colorado 25:01.0 Other W&M Individuals = Open Race: 18 Charlie Hurt William and Mary 25:26.0 19 Adam Otstot William and Mary 25:26.8 22 Pat Comstock William and Mary 25:31.4