Sept. 9, 2010

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The men and women’s cross country teams from the University of Memphis will travel to Little Rock, Friday, to compete in the UALR Invitational at Rebsamen Golf Course. The women’s five-kilometer race will kick off at 6 p.m., followed by the men’s race, also a five-kilometer run, at 6:45.

“The freshmen got a meet under their belts last weekend,” said cross country coach Doug Clark. “I don’t expect them to be as nervous this weekend. I hope to see faster times this week.”

In addition to the Tigers and host Arkansas-Little Rock, six other schools will bring both men’s and women’s teams: Arkansas State, Central Arkansas, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Grambling, Hendrix College and Christian Brothers. Arkansas Tech’s women’s squad will be represented, while Henderson State’s men’s squad will compete.

Last week, Arkansas-Little Rock’s men’s team won the Arkansas Tech Twilight Four-Mile Run, spearheaded by Johnny Purvis and Felix Maritim’s top-five finishes.

“We should place higher this week, but we shouldn’t let that make us complacent,” said Clark.

For the Tigers, the women’s squad will count on a pair of freshmen, Ellen Kildal and Jenny Johnston, to maintain the level of success they had in the season’s first meet in Nashville. The duo were the top scorers for a Lady Tiger squad that finished eighth at the Belmont/Vanderbilt Opener.

On the men’s side, freshman James Maglasang’s first race set a high precedent for him to continue throughout the 2010 season. Maglasang’s 13th-place finish in the season’s opening race was the best finish by a Tiger in the season-opener since Kym Morgan’s seventh-place posting in 2003 Memphis Twilight Classic.

“The important thing for this week is that we show up and run the best they can run each race in order to be in top form for the conference meet,” said Clark.