Southern Illinois University
EIU Panther Open
SIU cross country opens season at EIU Panther Open
09/04/2015 | 12:00:00 | Cross Country
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Southern Illinois cross country opened the season at the EIU Panther Invitational on Friday in Charleston, Ill., earning a third-place finish in the men's race and a fourth-place finish in the women's race.
Krista Menghini paced the Salukis in the women's race, earning a second-place finish in a time of 18:19.19 in her season debut. Shannon Effron picked-up a top-15 finish, crossing the finish line in 10th place with a time of 19:14.80.
"The women lost their focus in the middle of the race today," head coach David Beauchem said. "We finished in fourth, but we were five points away from second. We are young and need to respond better to racing and fighting through the entire race."
The men's team was without one of its top runners in Oscar Medina, but were able to fight for a third place finish. Brandon Shemonia was the top finisher for Southern, finishing in fifth with a time of 20:37.29. Shemonia was followed by Josh Maier who took sixth with a final time of 20:42.12. Rounding out the top-10 for SIU was Jonathan Vara, finishing 10th with his time of 21:02.17.
"The men did not respond to a faster early pace," Beauchem said. "The race distance was shortened due to the heat, so it was going to go out faster and we did not handle it. We have to stay healthy and keep getting better. If we do, we will have a successful season."
Southern returns to action a week from today, when they travel to St. Louis, Mo., for the Forest Park XC Festival.
Players Mentioned
