GUELPH SWEEPS MEN'S AND WOMEN'S TITLES, WHILE MAURICIO REPEATS
The men and women Gryphons each placed five runners in the top ten, with each team scoring 27 points. The win is the second consecutive OUA title for the Guelph women's team, and the first in three years for the men's team. The Gryphons were also the last team to take home both OUA trophies, having done so in 2001. Guelph coach David Scott-Thomas was named the OUA Cross Country Coach of the Year for both men's and women's teams.
In the women's race, Toronto's Beth Wightman placed first with a time of 17:17.38, some 51 seconds ahead of second-placed Laura Moulton (Guelph, 18:08.81) and just five seconds off the Fort Henry course record (17:12). Wightman led the pack from early in the race and built up a steadily increasing lead on Moulton. The win is Wightman's second OUA individual title, having previously won on 2003 when she was at Queen's. Western's Bethany Janzen finished third with a time of 18:26.71, having held third position from early in the first lap. Kingston native Erin Sask (Guelph) made a successful homecoming by taking fourth place with an 18:33.09 finish. Rounding out the all-stars were Julia Beniusis (5th place, Guelph), Donna Vakalis (6th place, Toronto), Elizabeth Forbes (7th place, Guelph), Jennifer Webber (8th place, Western), Kate Henderson (9th place, Guelph) and Jutta Merilainen (10th place, Trent).
Windsor's Cristiano Mauricio won the men's individual title with a time of 30:55.46. The win was the second straight OUA first-place finish for Mauricio, who was also last year's CIS champion and Cross Country Athlete of the Year. For the first two laps, Mauricio was closely pursued by second place finisher Cleve Thorson (Guelph, 31:26.60), but his lead increased to more than ten seconds in the third lap, and 31 seconds by the finish line. Third position was hotly contested by a close-knit pack of nearly a dozen runners for the first three laps, before Scott Arnald (Waterloo) pulled ahead to take third place at 31:51.94. Rounding out the top ten were Greg Hutchinson (4th place, Guelph), Steve Koziarski (5th place, Guelph), AP Baillargeon-Smith (6th place, Guelph), Brandon Young (7th place, Windsor), Joe Campanelli (8th place, Toronto), Robert Kitz (9th place, Queen's) and Brendan Hunt (10th place, Guelph).
Men's Rookie of the Year went to Matt Brunsting of the Guelph Gryphons, who finished 14th with a time of 32:48.25. Stephanie Van Veen from the Western Mustangs was the top female runnier, finishing 17th with a time of 19:07.17.
Top Five Teams (Women)
1 UNIV. OF GUELPH 27 points
2 U. OF TORONTO 47 points
3 U. OF WESTERN ONT. 75 points
4 U. OF WINDSOR 123 points
5 QUEEN'S UNIVERSITY 155 points
Top Five Teams (Men)
1 UNIV. OF GUELPH 27 points
2 U. OF WINDSOR 44 points
3 QUEEN'S UNIVERSITY 113 points
4 U. OF WESTERN ONT. 127 points
5 UNIV. OF WATERLOO 132 points
All-Stars (Women)
Beth Wightman Toronto 17:17.38
Laura Moulton Guelph 18:08.81
Bethany Janzen Western 18:26.71
Erin Sask Guelph 18:33.09
Julia Beniusis Guelph 18:37.20
Donna Vakalis Toronto 18:42.35
Elizabeth Forbes Guelph 18:44.32
Jennifer Webber Western 18:48.21
Kate Henderson Guelph 18:55.45
Jutta Merilainen Trent 18:56.43
All-Stars (Men)
Cristiano Mauricio Windsor 30:55.46
Cleve Thorson Guelph 31:26.60
Scott Arnald Waterloo 31:51.94
Greg Hutchinson Guelph 32:03.13
Steve Koziarski Guelph 32:07.66
AP Baillargeon-Smith Guelph 32:08.88
Brandon Young Windsor 32:12.32
Joe Campanelli Toronto 32:13.89
Robert Kitz Queen's 32:23.41
Brendan Hunt Guelph 32:28.86
Rookie of the Year (Women)
Stephanie Van Veen Western 19:07.17
Rookie of the Year (Men)
Matt Brunsting Guelph 32:48.25
Coach of the Year (Women)
Dave Scott-Thomas Guelph
Coach of the Year (Men)
Dave Scott-Thomas Guelph
(Source: Ian Speers, Queen's University Sports Information)