Greater Louisville Classic Preview

MEET PREVIEW
A week after placing seventh in a very competitive field at the Roy Griak Invite in Minneapolis, Minn., the Illini men's cross country squad heads to Louisville, Ky. to take part in the Greater Louisville Classic. The race is set to begin at 9:30 a.m. ET in E.P. `Tom' Sawyer Park.

COACH STEWART ON THE MEET
"We are running a young group at this meet," explained Jake Stewart "It's a group without a lot of 8K races under their belts, but they can gain a lot from getting to race in another big environment with a lot of teams. The guys that are racing are going to be in a really good race and they are excited for the opportunity."

ILLINI SET TO RUN
Seven Illini harriers will take to the course in Louisville on Saturday. Brendan McDonnell and Liam Markham, members of last year's NCAA Midwest Regional squad, will be making their season debuts for the Orange and Blue. Joining them at the starting line will be Ryan Burgoon, Joe Cowlin, Garrett Lee, Alex Gold and Alex Notton.

"The plan all along was to open Brendan and Liam on this course," said Stewart. "It's a flat course that you can get out and really run on, as opposed to Minnesota which was much tougher. Other than Brendan and Liam, we are racing a bunch of red-shirt freshmen and true sophomores. I'm looking forward to seeing how they respond to getting an opportunity to mix it up with some good teams."

LOOK AT THE COMPETITION
A week after facing a field with four teams ranked in the USTFCCCA coaches poll, the Illinois will once again face some nationally recognized competition. Big Ten foe Wisconsin enters the weekend ranked 11th, while Eastern Kentucky comes in at 23rd. Also in the field of 29 teams is Virginia Tech, who is receiving votes in the latest edition of the poll.

LAST TIME OUT
The Fighting Illini men's cross country team competed against the deepest field of the season at the Roy Griak Invite on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2014. The Orange and Blue placed seventh out of 31 teams.

Jannis Toepfer led the way for Illinois, finishing sixth in the field of over 300 runners. He traversed the 8-kilometer race in 24:57, under 11 seconds behind the individual champion, Nate Jewkes of Southern Utah. The second Illini runner into the chute was Bryce Basting, who completed the course in 25:27 to garner 20th place. Paul Zeman finished third for Illinois, claiming 47th with a time of 25:55. Ian Barnett was the fourth Illini runner to finish the race, finishing in 26:08 to take 63rd. Will Brewster was the squad's fifth runner, registering a 94th-place finish in 26:26. Garrett Lee (26:38) and Alex Gold (27:18) finished 110th and 152nd, respectively.

ILLINOIS RESULTS (OUT OF 301)
6. Jannis Toepfer, 24:57
20. Bryce Basting, 25:27
47. Paul Zeman, 25:55
63. Ian Barnett, 26:08
94. Will Brewster, 26:26
110. Garrett Lee, 26:38
152. Alex Gold, 27:18

TEAM RESULTS (OUT OF 31)
1. Southern Utah, 142
2. Colorado State, 146
3. Minnesota, 149
4. Michigan State, 153
5. Iowa State, 162
6. Texas, 215
7. ILLINOIS, 230
8. Arizona State, 258
9. North Carolina, 302
10. Grand Valley State, 333

UP NEXT
The Illini will have a week to prepare for the next competition on the schedule. On Friday, Oct. 17, the squad will be split up between the Wisconsin adidas Invite in Madison, Wis. and the Bradley `Pink' Classic in Peoria, Ill. The Wisconsin Invite is set to begin at 11:45 a.m. CT, while the Bradley Classic begins at 5:05 p.m. CT.