CSM men finish seventh at NCAA Division II Nationals;
Zywicki and Rooney garner All-American honors

JOPLIN, Mo. (Nov. 17, 2007) - The Colorado School of Mines men's cross country team finished seventh at the NCAA Division II National Cross Country Championships on Saturday morning in Joplin, Mo. For complete results, click here.

The men finished with a total of 228 points, putting them in seventh place out of 24 teams. Abilene Christian won the men's team title for the second year in a row with 59 points. Western State (66 points), Adams State (66), Grand Valley State University (152), Minnesota State-Mankato (185), Chico State (197), Mines (228), Southern Indiana (240), Slippery Rock (274) and New Mexico Highlands (284) rounded out the top 10 teams.

The Orediggers were led by Ben Zywicki, who finished the 10k course in 39th place (187 runners) with a time of 31:39.8. Zywicki was followed by Michael Rooney, who posted a 45th-place showing (31:48.2). Zywicki and Rooney both earned All-American honors (the top 30 American finishers earn All-American status). Rounding out the CSM men were Aaron Swift (50th, 31:57.0), John Tallerday (52nd, 31:58.3), Daniel Liechty (85th, 32:38.9), Clifton Oertli (141st, 33:59.6) and Sean Cusick (149th, 34:15.9).

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CSM men qualify for NCAA Cross Country Nationals
with 4th place finish; women finish 17th

VERMILLION, S.D. ( November 3, 2007) - The Colorado School of Mines men's cross country team finished fourth at the NCAA II North Central Regional Championships on Saturday morning, while the women finished 17th.

The men's team got an automatic berth to the NCAA II National Championships with their fourth-place team finish. The top five teams in both the men's and women's races automatically qualify for the Championships, which will be held on Saturday, November 17th, in Joplin, Missouri.

The men finished with 97 points behind Western State (45), who won the men's team title with an upset of Adams State (46 points). Third place was Minnesota State-Mankato with 89 points while New Mexico Highlands finished fifth (149 points) to clinch the last qualifying spot.

The Oredigger men were paced by Clifton Oertli who finished the 10 kilometer course in 14th place, earning him All-Region status. His time of 31:33 was just two seconds ahead of teammate Michael Rooney who also earned All-Region with his 15th place finish. The top 15 individuals in each race earned All-Region honors. Just missing out on regional honors was Ben Zywicki who finished in 17th place with a time of 31:43. The men's top seven were rounded off by John Tallerday (25th, 32:11), Aaron Swift (26th, 32:15), Dan Liechty (35th, 32:27) and Sean Cusick (43rd, 32:49).

The women finished with a total of 481 points putting them in 17th. The top five teams for the women were Adams State (28 points), Western State and Augustana (86 points apiece to tie for 2nd), South Dakota (115, 4th) and North Dakota (149, 5th).

Sydney Laws paced the Orediggers with her 37th place finish, covering the 6 kilometer course in a time of 22:43. Laws was followed by Emily Milian (101st, 24:08), Jennifer Wertz (108th, 24:20), Whitney Rice (111th, 24:28), Emily Trudell (123rd, 24:48), Amy Hughes (130th, 25:13) and Alison Bratrsovsky (148th, 27:37).

Regionals marks the end of the women's 2007 season, while the men will compete in two weeks (Saturday, November 17th) at the NCAA II National Championships in Joplin, Missouri.

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CSM men finish third at RMAC Championships; women finish ninth

DURANGO, Colo. (October 21, 2007) - The Colorado School of Mines men's cross country team finished third at the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championships on Saturday afternoon, while the women were ninth.

Adams State won both the men's and women's team titles while Western State was second.

The Orediggers had one male earn All-RMAC status with a ninth-place finish. Michael Rooney led the team in a time of 26:30.27 for the 8k course, good enough to earn him these honors. Rooney was followed by John Tallerday (11th, 26:46.78), Clifton Oertli (13th, 27:03.03), Aaron Swift (19th, 27:16.24), Dan Liechty (20th, 27:16.59), Sean Cusick (25th, 27:31.29), Ben Zywicki (28th, 27:36.05) and Nate Hatleback ( 29th, 27:37.84).

The women were led by Sydney Laws who finished 32nd overall in a time of 25:26.91 for the 6k course. The top five was rounded out by Emily Milian (35th, 25:49.33), Jennifer Wertz (56th, 27:02.36), Emily Trudell (27:05.93) and Whitney Rice (27:35.10).

The Orediggers will return to action on Saturday, November 3rd, competing in the NCAA II Regional meet in Vermillion, S.D.

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CSM men win overall championship at FHSU Tiger Open;
CSM women place 7th overall

HAYS, Kan. (October 6, 2007) - The Colorado School of Mines men's cross country team won the overall team championship at the Fort Hays State University Tiger Open this morning in Hays, Kan.

The Oredigger men captured the overall team win with 56 points, 17 ahead of runner-up Butler Community College who finished with 73. Mines competed against a total of 15 teams including both Division I and II schools along with a few community colleges. Clifton Oertli led the men with a fourth place overall finish in a time of 25:54.27 in the 8k race. Ben Zywicki (26:17.74) and John Tallerday (26:21.61) finished seventh and tenth, while Dan Liechty (26:56.56) and Nate Hatleback (27:01.56) rounded out Mines' top five in 18th and 19th place. For complete men's results, click here.

The Oredigger women finished seventh overall (12 teams) at the Fort Hays State University Tiger Open. Sydney Laws was Mines' top finisher, completing the 5k course in a time of 19:48.10 (19th place). The women's team was rounded off by Whitney Rice (20:56.56, 47th), Emily Milian (21:00.88, 49th), Emily Trudell (21:16.23, 57th), Nicole Myers (24:01.68, 89th) and Alison Bratrsovksy (24:51.83, 94th). For complete women's results, click here.

The Orediggers will next compete at the RMAC Championships on Saturday, October 20th, in Durango, Colo.

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CSM men win overall championship at Woody Greeno / Nebraska Invitational;
CSM women place 16th overall

LINCOLN, Neb. (September 15, 2007) - The Colorado School of Mines men's cross country team won the overall team championship at the 18th annual Woody Greeno / Nebraska Invitational on Saturday morning, September 15th, at Pioneer's Park in Lincoln, Neb. For complete results, click here.

The Oredigger men, who also captured the College Division title, concluded the 8K event with 52 points, 27 ahead of runner-up finisher University of Nebraska. For the CSM men, who competed against a combined 23 other schools from the NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA levels, the victory marked the second time in as many seasons that they had placed first amongst all institutions.

Ben Zywicki paced the CSM men, finishing fifth overall with a time of 25:09.10. Clifton Oertli (25:11.85) and John Tallerday (25:25.35) placed seventh and eighth, respectively, while Michael Rooney (25:40.15) took 12th. Rounding out the CSM men were Dan Liechty (26th; 26:14.05), Ryan Inman (36th; 26:30.20), Nate Hatleback (37th; 26:31.20), Sean Cusick (38th; 26:32.65), Nick Maynard (49th; 26:44.75), Joey Eisinger (51st; 26:49.50), Aaron Swift (59th; 27:00.05), Jacques Annandale (62nd; 27:03.20), Kelly Eurek (102nd; 27:49.35), Rob Conley (111th; 27:57.00) and Ian Mullikin (121st; 28:12.40).

The Oredigger women's cross country team placed 16th overall (24 teams) at the 6K Woody Greeno / Nebraska Invitational. For complete results, click here.

Sydney Laws was CSM's top finisher, taking 34th place with a time of 23:34.90. Amy Dubetz (25:26.45) and Emily Milian (25:38.30) secured 105th and 110th place, respectively, as well. Rounding out the CSM women were Whitney Rice (134th; 26:08.00), Jennifer Wertz (158th; 26:37.60) and Alison Bratrsovsky (221st; 31:54.00).

The Orediggers will next compete in the Fort Hays State University Tiger Invitational on Saturday, October 6th, in Hays, Kan.

For more information, please contact CSM Sports Information Director Jeff Duggan at 303-273-3095 or jduggan@mines.edu.

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CSM CROSS COUNTRY OPENS SEASON AT CU TIME TRIAL

BOULDER, Colo. (September 1, 2007) - The Colorado School of Mines cross country teams opened up the 2007 season by running in the CU Time Trial at the Buffalo Ranch Cross Country Course today. Both the men's and women's teams competed against Division I powerhouse The University of Colorado. For complete results, click here.

For the men, John Tallerday and Ben Zywicki ran side by side finishing first and second for the Orediggers and 10th and 11th overall. Tallerday ran a time of 26:53 while Zywicki clocked a 26:564 over the 8 kilometer course. Clifton Oertli (12th, 27:11), Nate Hatleback (9th, 27:36) and Dan Liechty (21st, 27:48) rounded out Mines' top five.

In the women's race, junior Sydney Laws was the Orediggers first finisher. Laws ran a time of 24:33 in the 6 kilometer race good enough to put her 20th overall.

CSM will officially begin its 2007 season on Saturday, September 15th, at the Woody Greeno Invitational in Lincoln, Neb.

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