Ball State’s cross country team returned to play Saturday in Louisville, Ky., to place eight out of 17 teams at the 12th annual Greater Louisville Classic.
At the E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park, which was home to the 2012 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, 50 other teams to ran alongside Ball State in the Women’s 5K Blue Race.
The classic included a total of six races with both men and women from some of the top teams around the nation running.
Last season, the event gave the Cardinals a bit of a struggle as the team placed 30th out of 31 teams.
After running in saturated weather, the Cardinals as a team scored 199 with an average time of 19:40.68. University of South Alabama took the top stop with 106 points followed by Austin Peay State University with 109, Samford University with 112, University of Evansville with 121 and Campbell University with 127.
For the first time, sophomore Danielle Dahl was the top finisher for Ball State with a time of 19:29.04 to place 62nd out of 329 runners.
Right behind Dahl were freshmen Ericka Rinehart and Jordan Timmons. Rinehart placed 73rd with 19:32.67 and Timmons took 81st with 19:36.17.
Juniors Caitlynn and Courtney Edon rounded out Ball State top five runners. Caitlynn Edon had a time of 19:49.75 for the 109th spot and Courtney Edon had a time of 19:55.75, which landed her the 120th spot.
The Cardinals will host the 2013 Ball State invitational on Oct. 18 at the Muncie Elks Country Club. The meet is schedule to begin at 5 p.m.
