LIONS FINISH 10TH, 11TH AT OUA CHAMPIONSHIPS
The York University Lions women's cross country team finished in 10th place at the 2011 OUA Cross Country Championships presented by Suunto, while the men's team ended up 11th at the same event in Ottawa.
Karen Lawson (Arcola, Sask.) had the best finish of the day for the Lions, crossing the line in a time of 19:44.3 for 45th place. Just behind her was team captain Kathryn Pistor (Barrie, Ont.), who ended the day in 48th place in a time of 19:54.1.
Rookie runner Emily McGaugh (Brampton, Ont.) was the third Lion to finish, crossing the line in 20:10.4. Rounding out the field was Carol Graham (Toronto) in a time of 20:17.4, Iana Kotliarova (Thornhill, Ont.) in a time of 21:13.6, Nicole Francki (Toronto) in a time of 21:40.0 and Catherine Huntley (Hatchet Lake, N.S.) in a time of 22:03.1.
On the men's side the top Lions runner was rookie Christopher Pietrangelo (Etobicoke, Ont.), who was impressive in his first OUA championship to finish in 46th place with a time of 33:39.5. Second-year runner Ethan Henry (Oshawa, Ont.), also the team captain, and Esteban Clavijo (Maple, Ont.), the only other second-year runner on the team, came in soon after. Henry was 59th in a time of 34:21.3 and Clavijo 62nd in a time of 34:43.0.
Also competing in the men's race for the Lions were rookies Ishfaque Ahmad (Brampton, Ont.) and Sam Neal (Calgary), who were 72nd and 91st, respectively, in times of 35:05.7 and 37:21.5, and third-year runner Brandon Davis (Riverside, Calif.), who finished in 87th place in a time of 36:50.9.
The Guelph Gryphons swept the team championships, winning the women's banner with 25 points and the men's with 20 points. Guelph's Andrew Nixon won the gold medal on the men's side, while Tamara Jewett of the Toronto Varsity Blues captured the women's individual gold medal.
