Oct. 18, 2006

Lutes in Preparation Week for Conference Meet

THIS WEEK: The Lute harriers will be getting some much needed rest in preparation for the Northwest Conference meet on Oct. 28. Coach Heather Kreier said, “We are going to work hard through Tuesday, then we’re going to start freshening up for conference."

MEN'S RESULTS LAST WEEK: At Clackamas Community College the Lutes were once again hampered by injuries. In the four-mile race, which featured some Division I powerhouses such as the University of Oregon, the Lute men were without three of their top five runners because of injury and illness. Junior Kenneth Chilcoat led the way for the men as he has all season, running a time of 21:30 and finishing 81st. Chilcoat was followed by John Pedack (22:26.83), Matt Beal (22:39.82), Tony Horton (23:22.40), Andy Musson (24:26), and Chris Ramirez (24:29). It has been a tough season especially given the expectations the team had entering the season. A good conference meet would help to erase some bad memories from the last couple weeks. Chilcoat said, “The way our season works everything is geared towards conference. If we can perform well there, everything we have gone through this season will show how resilient we are as a team.”

WOMEN'S RESULTS: Also at Clackamas Community College, the Lute women performed well on a course 120 meters shy of 3.1 miles. The Lutes seem to be peaking at the right time with conference just a little more than a week away. There were numerous personal records set this week. Freshman Katie Choate, who led the Lutes with a time of 18:22.05 to place 21st, said “It’s really rare to have as many girls as we did set PRs (personal records).” Others who set PRs were junior Lauren McDonald, junior Chelsea Berdahl, freshman Heather Brook and sophomore Kate Berdekin. McDonald finished with a time of 18:48.08, followed by sophomore Michele Hegg (19:11.45), Chelsea Berdahl and Heather Brook each with a time of 20:29, freshman Synneva Hagen-Lillevik (21:05.30) and Kate Burdekin (21:27.71).

NEXT WEEK: The Lutes will host the Northwest Conference Championship Meet at the PLU Golf Course. The men's 8000-meter race will start at 10 a.m., with the women's 6000-meter race following at 11 a.m.