Franklin & Marshall Ranks 10th in October 11 NCAA Mid-East Region Women's Cross Country Poll

by Sports Information
10/19/05

LANCASTER, PA -- Franklin & Marshall College received 10 votes to rank 10th in the October 11 NCAA Mid-East Region Women's Cross Country Coaches Poll.

The ranking is a highlight in a season in which the Diplomats have placed first at the Philadelphia Small College Meet, second at the Little Three Championship meet, fourth at the Johns Hopkins Invitational, fifth at the Towson Invitational and seventh at the Salisbury Invitational.

In the team’s most recent race, Meredith Janeczek (Jr., Hershey, PA/Hershey) crossed the finish line in 23:12 to place fifth and lead the Franklin & Marshall College women’s cross country team to a fourth place finish at the Johns Hopkins University Blue Jay Invitational at Oregon Ridge Park on October 7.

Overall, Janeczek was the third Centennial Conference runner across the finish line and was one of three F&M runners in the top 20 as Katie Byrne (Fr., Gettysburg, PA/Gettysburg) and Karen Ziga (Jr., Haverford, PA/Haverford) finished 12th (23:32) and 18th (23:54), respectively, as the Diplomats joined Haverford (three), Salisbury (four) and Towson (six) as one of four teams to place three or more runners in the top 20.

In the team scoring, F&M totaled 97 points to defeat Johns Hopkins (164), Swarthmore (168), Muhlenberg (170), Moravian (212), Ursinus (247), Loyola (297), Morgan State (304), McDaniel (327), Hagerstown Community College (369), Columbia Union (465) and Coppin State (469).

Further, in the latest Centennial Conference Coaches’ Rankings, Janeczek is ranked eighth in the Centennial Conference, while Byrne and Ziga are picked 14th and 19th, respectively.

Overall, Franklin & Marshall is one of four Centennial Conference schools ranked in the Top 10 in the region as Dickinson (#1), Swarthmore (#4) and Haverford (#5) round out the Conference's top 10 selections. In addition, Muhlenberg and Johns Hopkins received votes as the CC placed six of the Conference's 10 teams in the Top 15.

Franklin & Marshall will return to action on October 29 at the Centennial Conference Championship Meet hosted by Johns Hopkins University at Oregon Ridge Park.

NCAA Mid-East Region Women's Cross Country Poll (October 11, 2005)
1. Dickinson (10) 100
2. Grove City 89
3. Messiah 76
4. Swarthmore 63
5. Haverford 53
Salisbury 53
7. Allegheny 45
8. Elizabethtown 32
9. Carnegie Mellon 19
10. Franklin & Marshall 10

Also receiving votes: Juniata (8), Muhlenberg (4), Johns Hopkins (4), DeSales (1), Susquehanna (1)