TULSA, Okla. – The ULM cross country program got its season off to a strong start as the men's team finished third ahead of No. 5 Tulsa and the women took fifth at the Hurricane Festival on Saturday.
“We did really well and I was especially pleased with the men. Oklahoma State is a team that won the NCAA Championships in all of the last three years and Oklahoma was ranked No. 8 last year, so it was extraordinary competition. Even though Tulsa didn't have a couple of its best runners, it is ranked No. 5 in the nation so beating them is impressive,” said cross country coach Karoly Varga.
Junior Hillary Kirwa led the way for the men with a top-10 finish. He ran the four-mile race in an impressive 20:43 time, a 5:11 minute pace per mile.
Freshman Dusan Makevic finished close behind in 13th at 20:52, while junior Silah Chumba and freshman Vinnie Van Puyvelde posted top-20 times of 21:03 and 21:07, respectively.
Oklahoma State entered the meet as the top-ranked team in the country in the in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Preseason Poll.
On the women's side, freshman Pauline Muiruri ran the fastest time for the Warhawks with a top-20 finish at 12:32. Sophomore Rebecca Dark tallied a top-35 performance, stopping the clock at 13:18 over the two miles.
“We trained really hard these last few weeks and I'm really pleased with the results,” said Varga.
Oklahoma State won the women's race and entered as the No. 21 ranked team in the country. The Warhawks competed against Missouri State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Tulsa.
ULM will return home on Friday at 6:00 p.m. for its annual Warhawk Invitational.
ULM Men Individual Results (Four Miles)10.
Hillary Kirwa (20:43)
13.
Dusan Makevic (20:52)
17.
Silah Chumba (21:03)
19.
Vinnie Van Puyvelde (21:11)
24.
Brent Turner (22:36)
28.
Jonathan Jeffcoat (23:22)
30.
Dominique Cheffin (24:16)
31.
Lane Perilloux (25:14)
ULM Women Individual Results (Two Miles)18.
Pauline Muiruri (12:32)
34.
Rebecca Dark (13:18)
39.
Anakaren Lopez (13:30)
40.
Teona Glave (13:31)
42.
Brittany Garrison (14:12)
46.
Julie Hinson (14:21)
