NEW YORK – Providence’s Kimberley May and Villanova’s Liam Murphy took cross country honors this week after elite performances at the prestigious Princeton Fall Classic. May won the women’s race and Murphy was second in the men’s run. For most league schools, this past weekend was the final tune-up before the BIG EAST Championships at Morven Park in Leesburg, Va., on November 1.
 
BIG EAST Female Athlete of the Week
Kimberley May, Providence, Sr.
May continued her strong fall season by taking first place at the loaded Princeton Fall Classic with a time of 19:16.3 in the 6K race. She led the No.10 Friar squad to a runner-up team finish in a field of 22 teams.
 
BIG EAST Male Athlete of the Week
Liam Murphy, Villanova, Gr.
Murphy led Villanova to first place at the Princeton Fall Classic by posting a second-place individual finish. His time of 22:36.8 in the 8k is the second-fastest ever for a Villanova runner on an 8K course in school history. Two other Wildcats, junior Marco Langon (22:42.4-4^th) and freshman Bailey Habler (23:06.5-9^th), finished in the top nine.
 
Men’s Notes – Georgetown finished second as a team at the Princeton Fall Classic led by Abel Teffra, who took seventh (23:04.0)...Providence senior Michael Morgan finished 22^nd at Princeton with a time of 23:22.8. The Friars were 10^th…Butler redshirt sophomore William Zegarski finished 14^th among 244 runners in an 8K time at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals. The meet included 18 of the top 30 teams in the national poll. Zagarski was the second sophomore to cross the finish line. Butler finished 16^th in the team standings…DePaul grad student Damian Rodriguez finished 15^th at Bradley with a time of 24:11.02, which was a personal best. The Blue Demons finished 11^th…Xavier also competed at Bradley. Senior Trevor Nolan set the school record at the meet with a time of 24:17.25 in the men’s Red race, finishing 19^th in a field of 100. The Musketeers finished 13^th in the 29-team field…Creighton sophomore Evan Kraus won the Platte River Rumble with an 8K time of 25:33.07. Kraus was in 14^th place after 1K before rallying late to claim his first collegiate title. The Bluejays won the team title for the second straight year.
 
Women’s Notes – Georgetown captured the title at the Princeton Fall Classic. Six of the 23 teams in the field were ranked. Chloe Scrimgeour placed second with a time of 19:23.3. Lucy Jenks was fourth (19:33.9) and Melissa Riggins eighth (19:47.1)…Creighton sophomore Taylor Rorick placed third at the Platte River Rumble with a time of 22:40.76 in windy conditions on the 6K course. It was her first career top 10 finish…Butler grad student Wiktoria Klebowska led the Bulldogs in the women’s Red race at the Bradley “Pink” Classic. She claimed fourth place in a time of 20:22.12, which improved her lifetime best by 16 seconds. Klebowska helped push the Bulldogs to a fourth place finish as a team…DePaul graduate student Meghan Dieball finished 55^th at Bradley with a time of 21:25.77, six seconds short of her personal record…Connecticut senior Chloe Thomas finished fifth in a field of 250 runners at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals. She ran the 6k race with a time of 19:11. The top five finishers beat the previous course record. The Huskies finished 27^th in the team standings.
 
National Polls – BIG EAST men’s and women’s teams continued to show strength in the national polls. In the most recent USTFCCCA Polls from Oct. 8, Georgetown is the highest ranked squad on the women’s side at No. 9 followed by Providence at No. 10, Villanova at No. 25 with UConn among teams receiving votes. In the men’s poll, Butler is 18^th, Villanova is 19^th and Georgetown is 26^th.