University of Minnesota Athletics
MCC: Gopher Men's Cross Country Second at BYU
9/10/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Sophomore Justin Grunewald paced the Gophers finishing third overall, covering the 4-mile course in a time of 20 minutes, 21.7 seconds. Grunewald’s performance marks the first time he has crossed the finish line as the Gophers’ number-one runner in his young collegiate career. BYU’s Dustin Bybee won medalist honors with a time of 20:14.5.
True freshman Chris Rombough was impressive in his collegiate debut, placing sixth overall as the Gophers’ second finisher. Rombough posted a time of 20:46.9.
Also scoring for the Gophers were Ryan Malmin in 11th place with a time of 20:59.1, David VanOrsdel in 13th in 21:04.3 and Ben Puhl in 15th with a clocking of 21:16.9.
“This was a challenging way to start our season…coming out to a meet in high altitude and against one of the nation’s top teams, but I believe we got a lot out of it,” said Golden Gopher head coach Steve Plasencia. “We had some young guys step up. Justin (Grunewald) proved he has taken another step up in his performance level and Chris (Rombough) will be as good as advertised.”
The Gophers ran without two key performers in Erik Grumstrup and Antonio Vega, both who missed the meet due to injury.
Minnesota’s next competition is in two weeks, when the Gophers play host to the Roy Griak Invitational on Sept. 24.
BYU Autumn Classic Saturday, Sept. 10, 2005 Cassade Golf Course - Orem, Utah – 4 miles Team Results 1. BYU 1-2-5-7-8-(9)-(10) 23 2. Minnesota 3-6-11-12-13-(14)-(15) 45 3. Utah Valley State 4-16-17-18-19-(20)-(21) 74 Top 10 Individuals 1. Dustin Bybee (BYU) 20:14.5 2. Chancellor Goodwin (BYU) 20:21.5 3. Justin Grunewald (Minn.) 20:21.7 4. Joe Bendoski (Utah State) 20:31.5 5. Josh McAdams (BYU) 20:37.5 6. Chris Rombough (Minn.) 20:46.9 7. Tyrei Jensen (BYU) 20:48.3 8. Nick McCombs (BYU) 20:49.8 9. Mark Nevers (BYU) 20:50.4 10. Brad Andrus (BYU) 20:52.8 Other Gopher Finishers 11. Ryan Malmin 20:59.1 13. (12) David VanOrsdel 21:04.3 15. (13) Ben Puhl 21:16.8 19. (14) Ben Hanson 21:29.7 21. (15) Seijen Takamura 21:33.9 23. Trent Riter 21:41.2 39. Luke Walker 22:24.5 44. Severyn Claymore 22:56.4 50. Eddie Kibira 23:10.5 51. Todd Johnson 23:23.7
Players Mentioned
