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 Meaghan Smith set a new personal record by 1 minute, 32 seconds |
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Four Runners Set Personal Records at Duke Invitational
April 9, 2007
DURHAM, NC - The George Washington cross country team had four runners compete on the track at the Duke Invitational on Friday, April 6 at Duke's Wallace Wade Stadium. Head Coach Brian Beil was very pleased with all four performances, as each runner set a personal record (PR) in their respective races.
Freshman Meaghan Smith (Pleasant Valley, NY/Arlington) ran a 18:11.97 in the 5,000 meters, setting a new PR by 1 minute, 32 seconds. Coach Beil was most pleased with Smith's huge performance. "Meghan's race reinforces my long standing belief that hard work will always pay off in the end," said Beil. She's been breaking her back in workouts since she came to GW in August, and after suffering through a Cross Country season that didn't see her times improve, she's finally had her breakout performance." Smith's previous PR came at Richmond two week ago, as the Pleasant Valley, NY, native ran a 19:43.47.
Sophomores Chris Pisano (Toms River, NJ/Toms River North) and Keith Moody (Orange, FL/Spruce Creek) also set PR's in their respective races, the 5,000m (5K) and 10,000m (10K). Pisano, who has missed almost an entire year due to injury ran a 15:05.44 in the 5,000, while Moody ran the 10,000 in 32:42.23. "With only four months of training under his belt, I'm certainly optimistic about where he'll {Pisano} go from this point forward," said Beil. Moody's 10K time shattered his old PR by 2 minutes, 51 seconds. "Keith went about hitting exacty even splits right from the start, and it paid off with a new PR almost 3 minutes faster than his previous best," said Beil. Beil is optimistic that getting familiar at this distance will pay dividends for him {Moody} in the Fall when Cross Country season rolls around.
Junior Mark Drath (Los Angeles, CA/Brentwood School) also set a new PR in the 1500m (.93 miles) with a 4:08.84. Drath's previous best was a 4:13.68. "In a smaller section with less traffic to contend with in the early goings, I see him {Drath} lowing his PR even more by the end of the spring season," finished Beil.
The Colonials will return to the track this weekend, Friday, April 13, and Saturday, April 14, at the Lou Onesty/Milton Abramson Invitational in Charlottesville, VA. GW will open its 2007 Cross Country season at the Mount St. Mary's Invitational in September.
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