Men's Cross Country 15th In Midwest Region

 
EIU placed sixth in a field of 26 teams with many regionally ranked.   The Panthers were led by Riley McInerney as the junior turned in the 15th best 8K time in school history finishing 21st overall with a time of 24:28.4.  Joe Calio and Paxson Menard followed McInerney's strong performance with both runners posting times under 25 minutes.
 
EIU moved into this week's rankings at No. 15.   Oklahoma State is first in the NCAA Midwest Region followed by Tulsa, Illinois, Oklahoma and Minnesota in the top five.  South Dakota State is sixth with Iowa State, Bradley, Kansas and Missouri in the top ten.  The final five schools in the regional poll are Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois State, Wichita State and Eastern Illinois.
 
It marks the first time since late in the 2012 season that Eastern Illinois has been ranked in the Men's USTFCCCA Midwest Regional Poll.
 
"The men's team continues to progress with each passing week and although we are very excited to be recognized for this progress and hard work, we also know that given four more weeks and the 10K distance, we have the capability of doing more," said EIU head coach Erin Howarth.  "To have five guys average sub-25 minutes, as we did this past Friday, we are confident and hungry for what's ahead."

EIU will send a small group of runners to the Illini Open this Friday and then get set for OVC Championship action with its top group on Oct. 31.