Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois University
Golden Eagle Invitational
Krolak wins in Saluki Cross Country Debut
09/02/2017 | 2:37:00 | Cross Country
Megan Krolak won her first cross country race as a Saluki and was one of three Saluki women to finish in the top-15 at the Golden Eagle Cross Country Invitational Saturday in Cookeville, Tenn.
Krolak, a redshirt sophomore who sat out last season after transferring from Illinois State, won her first collegiate cross country title with a personal-best 5k time of 18:52. Krolak was joined in the top-15 by seniors Claire Darnell and Kelly O'Shea, as Darnell was third in 19:32 and O'Shea took 15th in 20:29.
The Saluki women finished third in the team standings behind a pair Southeastern Conference (SEC) programs. SIU totaled 54 points, with just two points separating SIU from runner-up Auburn, who tallied 52 points. Mississippi State won the team title with 24 points off the strength of five top-10 finishes.
On the men's side, Cain Hassim was Southern's top finisher in his first cross country meet as a Saluki. The St. Caterines, Ontario native finished 15th with a time of 20:20. Freshman Jacob DeWitt was 20th place in 20:29, while senior Jonathan Vara and Theo Hassim placed 25th and 26th, respectively.Â
The Saluki men notched four top-25 finishes to place fifth in the team standings. Auburn won the team title with 39 points, while Tennessee Tech (42), Mississippi State (57), Western Kentucky (92), SIU (111) and Tennessee State (170) rounded out the six-team field.
The Salukis are back in action at the Commodore Classic, hosted by Vanderbilt, on Saturday, Sept. 16. Â
Saluki Women's Results
Pl.  Name                      Time      Pts.
1    Megan Krolak      18:52.6   1 Â
6    Claire Darnell       19:32.9   5
15    Kelly O'Shea       20:29.6  14
17    Hillary Merrill      20:47.5  16Â
21    Sydney Spranger   21:44.2  18Â
23    Sasha Lanning    21:56.1  Â
Saluki Men's Results
15     Cain Hassim                   20:20.4  15
20     Jacob DeWitt                 20:29.9  20
25     Jonathan Vara               20:44.3  24       Â
26     Theo Hassim               20:53.1  25Â
32     Josh Maier                      22:06.8  27
35     Chris Edwards               22:31.9       Â
36    Canoy Tyree              23:03.5 Â
