MADISON, Wis. – Freshman Rebecca Craddock led the Fighting Illini women's cross country team at the Ed Nuttycombe Invite on Friday with a time of 21:31.5 in the women's 6K open race to place 15th overall. As a team, the Illini finished with 172 points, placing sixth in the team score competition.
"Today was a solid meet overall with a couple women standing out," said assistant coach Sarah Haveman. "Overall, we can use this as we continue to progress towards the conference meet in two weeks."
With four of the seven Illinois runners racing in the first 6,000 meter race, Friday's competition marked a chance for growth for the young Illini as it continues to build the program. Led by Craddock, three of the first five Illini to finish were freshmen as Nicki Cast and Katie Stapleton finished second and fourth, respectively, on the team.
Four races into the season, Craddock has led the Orange and Blue at each meet. Today marked Craddock's second top-15 finish of the season after she placed third at the EIU Walt Crawford Invite to start the season. The Brunswick, Ohio native ran at a 5:46 per mile clip in her first 6,000 meter competition, holding a similar pace to her 5K personal-best pace (5:40) two weeks ago at Louisville.
"It was another solid race for Rebecca [Craddock] in her progression as a collegiate runner," said coach Haveman. "She continues to be a reliable runner for us and will continue to get better with each race experience."
Freshman Nicki Cast followed Craddock as the second Illini to finish the 6,000 meters, timing 22:35.4 to place 64th overall. Cast was able to maintain her personal-best 5,000-meter pace for the extra kilometer on Friday, holding a pace of 6:02 per mile that bested her pace from Louisville by a second.
"Nicki ran a composed race today," Haveman said of the freshman. "She's showing maturity in her first year, stepping up and executing a solid race."
Running third for the Illini was senior Nicole Choquette, finishing the race in 22:56.1 and placing 74th overall. Freshman Katie Stapleton (80th/23:06.5) and senior Miranda Marry (83rd/23:14.5) rounded out the scoring for the team.
"It was a solid day for each of those three," said Haveman. "They each stayed together and pushed each other through the race. Each of them can use this to build off of going forward."
Up next, the Fighting Illini will run their final regular season meet of the season at home, as they host the Illini Open on Friday, October 20. Hosted at the UI Arboretum, the women's 5K race will begin at 4 p.m., followed by the men's 8K at 4:40 p.m.
Illinois Women's Open Race Results (Complete Results):
15. Rebecca Craddock, 21:31.5
64. Nicki Cast, 22:35.4
74. Nicole Choquette, 22:56.1
80. Katie Stapleton, 23:06.5
83. Miranda Marry, 23:14.5
94. Allison McGrath, 23:58.3
99. Grace Rogers, 24:58.5
Women's Open Race Team Scores (Complete Results):
1. Colorado – 35
2. Michigan State – 60
3. Boise State – 80
4. Washington State – 111
5. Minnesota - 112
6. Illinois – 172
7. Utah – 177
8. Eastern Michigan – 208
9. Wisconsin - 216
For complete coverage of Fighting Illini cross country, visit FightingIllini.com, follow the Illini on Twitter (@IlliniMXC and @IlliniWXC) and Instagram (@IlliniMXC and @IlliniWXC) and like Fighting Illini Men's Cross Country and Fighting Illini Women's Cross Country on Facebook.
