Pre-Nationals no problem

Head coach Peter Farrell of the women's cross country team has a new task on his agenda: find more challenging races.

This past Saturday, Princeton traveled to Pre-Nationals in Terre Haute, Ind., where Farrell's No. 8 women claimed the team championship in the "White" race, speeding past No. 2 Colorado and five other teams ranked in the top 15. The No. 15 men also had a strong showing, finishing 15th in the "White" race.

With 235 runners in total participating, all seven Tigers finished in the top 54. Sophomores Liz Costello and Christy Johnson led the pack of Orange and Black runners, taking seventh and 10th, respectively. Costello finished the 6k race in 20 minutes, 25 seconds and Johnson came in just two seconds behind her.

Team scores are based on the times of each squad's top five finishers, and Princeton totaled 149 points for a comfortable 22-point lead over second place Arizona State.

Just as in the Paul Short Run two weeks ago, freshmen Sarah Cummings and Ashley Higginson had tremendous showings, with Cummings finishing 38th at 21:01 and Higginson finishing 46th at 21:11. Junior Megan Brandeland crossed the line just one second behind Higginson, while junior Jolee VanLeuven and senior captain Caitlin McTague rounded out the Princeton showing with times of 21:14 and 21:19.

"Our team is just working hard right now at staying composed and peaking at the right time this season," Higginson said. "It's an amazing strategy ... to go into every race for the six other girls by their side," referring to the pack running strategy used by the Tigers this season.

The women's team's average time was 20:52, the third-best at Pre-Nationals. No. 1 Stanford claimed victory with an average time of 20:36 in Saturday's "Blue" race, while "Blue" runner-up Florida State averaged 20:45.

On the men's side, senior Frank Tinney led the Tigers in the 8K race, finishing in 26th place at 23:48. Junior Michael Maag finished 45th in 24:02, while sophomores Ben Sitler and Ted Price finished at 24:17 and 24:26, respectively.

Kicking off his 2007 season, senior captain and 2006 All-American David Nightingale finished the race at 115th overall with a time of 24:38.

"[It was] a huge confidence-booster for the team," Tinney said of Nightingale's return from a leg injury. "He will only continue to progress from here on out."

Nightingale rounded out the Princeton top five, giving the Tigers a team score of 355. Seniors Tim O'Neill and Justin Pines were the final two Princeton competitors, turning in times of 25:15 and 25:25, respectively.

Saturday's race conditions were reported by members of both teams to be absolutely stellar.

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"For the first time in a few years, there was no substantial rain the week leading up to the race, so the course was very hard, and as a result, fast as ever," Tinney said. "It was as good as it gets."

Indiana's Lavern Gibson Championship Course has been the site of the NCAA Pre-Nationals and National Championships for years, but despite having run it in the past, some athletes still found the course challenging.

"There are lots of turns and loops," Costello said. "It's easy to get thrown to the side on the turns, even if you are not in a large group."

According to Johnson, all the little loops "make the course great for spectators, but not so easy on the runners." Experience, though, definitely helps in traversing the circuitous terrain of Lavern Gibson.

"Being here for the fourth year, the course seemed much smaller, in a sense," Tinney said. "Certain stretches seem much more bearable, and we knew where to execute the race strategy more properly. Familiarity breeds confidence on these courses."

Next up for the Tigers is the Ivy League Heptagonal Championships in two weeks at New York City's Van Cortlandt Park. With the NCAA regional meet coming up on Nov.10, both teams are getting ready for the home stretch.

"All of us are very excited about this weekend's performance," Costello said. "But championship season is only just beginning."

If the past two weeks are any indication of what is to come, the Tiger men and women will be right there in the front of the pack come crunch time, continuing to demand greater and greater challenges.