Eagles to Run Against Nation's Elite

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EAGLES TO FACE NATION’S BEST: The men’s cross country team will travel to Terre Haute, Ind., to compete against some of the nation’s best cross country runners. The men will be racing in the White race, which is set to start at 11:40 a.m. and will feature the following schools: Arizona State, Belmont, Cal Poly, Coastal Carolina, Colorado, Cornell, Eastern Michigan, Eastern Kentucky, Florida, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Indiana State, Kansas, Lamar, Liberty, Marquette, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Montana, NC State, Notre Dame, Oakland, Ohio U., Penn, Princeton, Providence, Southern Illinois, Southern Utah, Stanford, Syracuse, UC-Santa Barbara, Utah State, UTEP, William & Mary, Western Kentucky, Washington State, Weber State, Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Yale.

JOSH KARANJA: MAC RUNNER OF THE WEEK: Junior Josh Karanja was selected the MAC Runner of the Week for the weeks of September 24 and October 1. Karanja, an Ottawa, Canada, native, turned in a blistering time of 24:20 at the Notre Dame Invitational to finish 18th and lead his team to an eighth place finish overall. This time was his fastest collegiate 8K for the junior, who has stepped in as the number one runner for the Eagles this season after the graduation of All-American Corey Nowitzke.

Karanja also took home the individual victory for the Eagles at the Western Ontario International, winning the 10K race in a time of 31:53, besting his nearest opponent by six seconds. Karanja’s time was the eleventh fastest time in meet history. He also helped his team win the meet in a record-setting 25 points (beating Windsor’s 27 points in 2003). They also set a record for the lowest overall team time total of 161:26 for the top five runners. The previous record, 161:32, was set by the University of Michigan’s 1990 team. He and his fellow scorers finished within 33 seconds of one another.

NOTRE DAME WRAP UP: The Eastern Michigan University men’s cross country team traveled to South Bend, Ind., to take on some stiff national competition at the prestigious 52nd Annual Notre Dame Invitational held at the nine-hole Notre Dame Golf Course. The Eagles finished in eighth place with 220 points. Host and 12th-ranked Notre Dame took home the team title with 92 points.

Junior Josh Karanja (Ottawa, Canada-Nepean) led the Eagles for the third consecutive time this season. The veteran turned in a blistering 24:20, his fastest collegiate 8K, good for an 18th place finish. Second man and fellow junior, Josh Perrin (Hillsdale, Mich. - Hillsdale) ran the race in a time of 24:47, his second-fastest 8K and finished 42nd.

EAGLES DOMINATE ACROSS THE BORDER: The Eastern Michigan University men’s cross country team dominated a 17-team field at the 2007 Western International held at the Thomas Valley Golf Course. The Eagles scored 25 points, beating their nearest competitor, Bucknell University by 88 points. They also beat instate and Mid-American Conference rival Central Michigan University. All five scorers for the Eagles finished in the top ten and within 33 seconds of one another.

The Eagles set a team record for lowest point scored at the meet with 25 points. The previous record was set by the University of Windsor in 2003. They also set a record for the lowest overall team time total of 161:26 for the top five runners. The previous record, 161:32, was set by the University of Michigan’s 1990 team.

VERSUS MICHIGAN: The Eastern Michigan University men’s cross country team opened their 2007 season ready to defend their two consecutive MAC Championship titles. They competed against cross town rival, the University of Michigan Wolverines in a non-scoring meet.

Josh Karanja was the top finisher for the Eagles. He ran the 10,000-meter course in a time of 31:20, finishing second. The next harrier to cross the line for the Eagles was junior Kyle Mena who crossed the line in sixth place with a time of 31:59. The Green and White continued to cross as Curtis Vollmar followed in seventh in a time of 32:05. David Brent was next, finishing eighth, with a time of 32:21.

Eastern Michigan Athletics

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