Cross Country set to race at Bradley Pink Classic

Friday, October 12

Peoria, IL

Southern Illinois University

Bradley Pink Classic

Photo by: Tom Weber

10/11/2018 | 2:35:00 | Cross Country

By: Will Becque, SIUSalukis.com

The Southern Illinois University cross country teams travel to Peoria, Ill. Friday for the Bradley Pink Classic, hosted by Bradley University.

37 teams are scheduled to compete at the event, held at the Newman Golf Course, including eight Missouri Valley Conference teams. Illinois State, Bradley, Loyola, Drake, Northern Iowa, Missouri State and Valparaiso will join SIU in hopes of previewing the course prior to the conference championships in two weeks. The 2018 MVC Championships will be held at Newman Golf Course on Oct. 27, as will the 2018 NCAA Midwest Regional on Nov. 9.

"We have learned a lot from each race, especially at Wisconsin," third-year head coach Kevin Cataldo said. "We have nothing to lose at this meet so I'm okay if we take a little risk in hopes we find out more about ourselves before the MVC Championships."

Friday's meet is the first of three-straight that Southern will run in Peoria. The Saluki women will run a 6K beginning at 3:15 p.m., while the men's team will compete in an 8K race starting at 4 p.m.

This will mark the seventh time that the Salukis have raced at the Bradley Classic and the first since 2016. Josh Maier placed 12th that year with a time of 24:46.6. SIU's men won the Bradley Classic team title in 2012 behind Zach Dahleen's runner-up finish while Southern's women last claimed the team title in 2006. Individually, Jeff Schirmer was the last Saluki to win at the Bradley Classic, as he ran 25:12 to finish first in 2006.

The Salukis are coming off a week off of competition following the Nuttycombe Invitational in Madison, Wisconsin that saw redshirt senior Josh Maier win the men's open race and claim MVC Male Cross Country Athlete of the Week honors, becoming the first Saluki since 2014 to do so.

"I'm really happy with how both genders have progressed during our week off," Cataldo said. "We had another tough week of training and they are looking really good through this last hard phase (of training) before we start to back off."

Maier will be joined by redshirt junior Cain Hassim as upperclassmen who will be expected to set the pace early for the Salukis. Sophomore Michael Church, Jacob DeWitt and Theo Hassim as well as freshmen Reid Parsons and Jacob Bryan round out Southern's top-seven heading into Peoria.

The Saluki women will run a 6K for the second-straight meet. Megan Krolak clocked a time of 21:58.4 to finish 38th out of 114 at the Nuttycombe Invitational.

Southern's young core of Olivia Murphy, Kayla Schiera, Grace McDurmon, Maddy Hurt and Sydney Matusik each ran their first collegiate 6Ks at Wisconsin and will get a chance to improve upon their times before running a 6K at the regional meet on Nov. 9.

Friday's meet begins with the Women's White Race (B Race) at 1 p.m., followed by the Men's White Race (B Race) at 1:45 p.m. The mixed-gender Open race will start at 2:30 p.m. The Women's Red Race (A Race) will begin at 3:15 p.m. followed by the Men's Red Race (A Race) at 4 p.m.