(Oct. 30, 2004) - The East Tennessee State cross country teams participated in the Southern Conference Cross Country Championships Saturday morning from the Furman University Golf Course in Greenville S.C. The Buccaneer women's team finished sixth in the event, while the men's team placed seventh.

            Chattanooga swept the championships, marking the first time since 1998 that the same school won both the men's and women's races. UTC placed four runners in the top-10 in both events.

            The Buccaneer women were led by junior Christine Ward (Candler, N.C.), who finished 14^th in a time of 19:18.48. Chattanooga's Shannon Wommack won the championship in a time of 17:38.95.

            ETSU senior Jennifer Habbestad (Tampa, Fla.) finished in 22^nd with a time of 19:44.21. The third ETSU finisher was senior Tatiana Arriaran (Cochabamba, Bolivia) who crossed the line in 20:21.84 to place 39^th.

            "Our staff is excited because we had to run as well as we possibly could to finish in the top-six today, and we accomplished that goal," commented ETSU assistant cross country coach Michelle Byrne following the meet. "This is a team that showed a lot of character this season. We are moving in the right direction, but we still have a lot of work to do. We have to continue to work hard and recruit well to make the team stronger depth-wise."

            Junior Peter Dalton (Dublin, Ireland) led the ETSU men's team once again, finishing in 11th with a time of 26:27.34. Chattanooga's Steven Kocsis won his second-straight men's title in a time of 25:34.82.

            Freshman Jordan Ladd (Lyn, Ontario) had a solid race, crossing the line in 27:45.88 to finish 33^rd. Sophomore Joshua Hicks (Riceville, Tenn.) was the next Buccaneer finisher, placing 41^st with a time of 28:12.18.

            "It is difficult for our team to be in this position, but the bottom line is that this team dealt with a lot of adversity this fall," said ETSU head cross country coach Dave Walker. "The encouraging thing is that everybody will be back next season, and if everyone is healthy, there is no reason we can't challenge at the top of the conference.    

Men's Results: SoCon Championships - 8K

11. Peter Dalton (Jr.), 26:27.34

33. Jordan Ladd (Fr.), 27:45.88

41. Joshua Hicks (So.), 28:12.18

45. Benard Towett (Fr.), 28:21.75

64. Joshua Gibson (Jr.), 29:08.01

76. James Coggins (Fr.), 30:22.58

78. Graham Foster (So.), 30:44.12

Women's Results: SoCon Championships - 5K

14. Christine Ward (Jr.), 19:18.48

22. Jennifer Habbestad (Sr.), 19:44.21

39. Tatiana Arriaran (Sr.), 20:21.84

43. Maggie Hunter (So.), 20:28.42

49. MacKenzie LaBonte (Fr.), 20:50.19

57. Tiffany Collier (Sr.), 21:08.23