MEMPHIS, Tenn. ? Austin Peay State University men and women's cross country teams had strong showings at the Memphis Twilight Classic, Saturday. The men finished 10th out of 29 teams, while the women finished 12th out of 36 squads.

Leading the Lady Govs was senior Bertha Castillo, who finished an impressive 12th out of 275 runners with a mark of 18:40.85. Senior Melissa Nobbs finished 66th with a time of 20:34.72, while freshman Janelle Avery slipped a little in this meet, finishing 77th with a mark of 20:46.00. Junior Tracee Gruskiewicz (107th, 21:29.44) and junior Kate Gauf (135th, 22:26.50) also had solid runs for the Lady Govs.

“I thought we ran quite well on the women's side,” said head coach Doug Molnar. “We ran against some tough teams and held our own. I think Janelle had a tough time with the hot conditions, but to finish 12th out of 36 as a team wasn't too bad at all.”

On the men's side, seniors Tim Hall (33rd, 26:51.32) and Ryne Sexton (34th, 26:53.89) paced the Govs. Freshman Andre Braima finished 56th with a time of 27:32.34, while freshman Jimmy Lynch (84th, 28:30.87) and senior John Newlin (112th, 29:13.38) picked up the slack in the absence of some key runners.

“With (freshman) Enock Langat and (sophomore) Jordan Payne out all week, and (senior) Matt Rowe having to drop out of the race after two miles, I thought we had several guys step up,” said Molnar. “To finish 10th as a team without three of our top five runners is outstanding.”

The cross country teams will next compete in the Earl Jacoby Memorial, Saturday, at Huntsville, Ala.

- AP -