CARBONDALE, Ill. – Junior Caitlin Busch (Waterloo, Ill./Freeburg) won the Missouri Valley Conference individual title and the Bradley women's cross country team ran away with the team title Saturday morning at the MVC Cross Country Championships.
Busch took top individual honors by nearly three and one-half seconds to become the first Brave to claim the MVC cross country individual title since Bradley Hall of Famer Mary Ellen Hill won in back-to-back years in 1999 and 1998. She crossed the line with a school-record 5K time of 17:04.43 to break Hill's previous school mark of 17:08 set in November 1998. Alex Wilson of Northern Iowa was second overall at 17:07.82.
Bradley had three of the top five and four of the top 11 individuals in the field as the Braves claimed the team title by a convincing 32 points for the first MVC title for BU since winning the 1998 championship in Peoria. First-year Bradley head coach Willy Wood was named MVC Coach of the year with his squad's 39 points ranking as the best score at the MVC Championship since Wichita State won the 2006 crown with 38 points and the lowest point total for the Braves in school history at the MVC Championship.
"I could not be more pleased with the manner in which our women competed today," said Wood. "They ran calmly, confidently and selflessly. We were a true team today."
Senior Emily Delvo (Springfield, Ill./Sacred Heart Griffin) earned all-conference honors for the second consecutive year, crossing the line in fourth with a career-best 5K time of 17:12.85 for the third best time in Bradley history.
Right on Delvo's heels was junior Kristen Busch (Waterloo, Ill./Freeburg) in fifth as she also garnered cross country All-MVC honors for the second straight year. Kristen Busch clocked a career-best time of 17:15.78 for the fourth fastest 5K in program history.
Senior Rosie Hiles (Hampshire, England/Alton College/University of Birmingham) took home honorable mention all-league honors after finishing 11th at 17:34.86 to miss First-Team All-MVC honors by four seconds. Junior Lauren Houmes (Hoopeston, Ill./Hoopeston) took 13 seconds off her career-best 5K time, crossing the line at 17:51.62 to finish 18th and round out the scoring for the Braves.
Bradley was 32 points better than second-place finisher Illinois State (71 points) and 39 points ahead of defending champ and third-place finisher Southern Illinois (78 points).
The Braves will host the NCAA Midwest Regional Friday, Nov. 14 at Newman Golf Course.
Delvo Takes Fifth; Bradley Men Third At MVC XC Championship
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Senior Eric Delvo (Springfield, Ill./Sacred Heart Griffin) finished fifth to become the fourth two-time All-MVC cross country runner in school history and the Bradley men's cross country squad matched its best team finish at the Missouri Valley Conference Championship with a third-place showing Saturday.
Delvo, who was an All-MVC performer after a seventh-place finish last year at the league championship, was the first Brave to finish in the top five at the MVC Championship since Rich Kruiswyk was fourth in 1983 with a career-best time of 24:21.35. The first two-time All-MVC cross country runner at Bradley since Eric Suender (1987 & 1989), Delvo posted the third-best 8K time in school history and fastest time by a Brave since Kruiswyk's 1983 school record of 24:15.
Bradley's third-place team finish matched the best in school history at the MVC Championship as the Braves finished in the top three in the league for the first time since 1987. Defending champion and host Southern Illinois tied Indiana State for the team title with 73 points. Bradley was a close third in the team standings with 82 points, tallying the squad's best score at the MVC meet since 1983 (48 points).
Senior Chase Coffey (Hanna City, Ill./Farmington) was 11th overall with a career-best effort of 24:39.20 and earned honorable mention All-MVC honors. Coffey was three seconds from joining Delvo as a two-time first-team all-conference honoree and his time ranks sixth among BU career-best marks.
"Although I am disappointed for our seniors, I am impressed with the way our men competed," said first-year Bradley head coach Willy Wood. "We put ourselves in a position to win. It was a head fought effort. And, although we equaled the school's best performance there is not a content soul in the program. We look forward to the opportunity to line up again in 365 days."
Sophomore Patrick Campbell (Wauwatosa, Wis./Wauwatosa), who was the 2013 MVC Freshman of the Year at last year's championship, crossed the line with a time of 24:50.91 to top his previous career-best by six seconds.
Freshman Michael Ward (Cardiff, South Wales/Llanishen) took home the 2014 MVC Freshman of the Year award after posting a season-best time of 24:58.38 to finish 21st as he beat his previous season-best by nearly 90 seconds. Sophomore Caleb Beck (Oswego, Ill./Oswego) completed the team scoring for the Braves in 29th at 25:22.52.
Bradley will host the 2014 NCAA Midwest Regional Friday, Nov. 14 at Newman Golf Course.
