BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The field has been finalized for the 35th annual Lehigh University Brooks Paul Short Run on Friday, October 3. This year, more than 4,000 runners will compete from more than 300 high schools and colleges around the country. Several teams are ranked in the national polls from Divisions I-III and even more are listed in the regional rankings, making this event one of the most prestigious cross country races in the country.
Many of the area’s top runners will be making their returns to the Lehigh Valley for the 2008 Run. Allentown Central Catholic’s Frances Koons will be running for Villanova for the event. Koons is tied for the ninth best time on the current 6K Goodman Campus Course’s history with her 20:16 finish in 2006.
Chanelle Price will return to the Lehigh Valley with the Tennessee Volunteers for the first time. The freshman from Easton has made an instant impact in the SEC with the Lady Vols. Northwestern Lehigh High School star Dana Stellar will be representing the Mountain Hawks in the field.
On the men’s side, Trevor Van Ackeren will come home to Bethlehem for the first time as a collegiate runner. The freshman for Princeton made a name for himself running for Liberty High School before moving on to race with the Tigers.
Villanova looks to defend its consecutive men’s titles heading into this year’s run. The Wildcats are one of just four teams to win consecutive championships in the history of the competition, along with Penn State (1979-1981), Michigan State (1997-1998) and Georgetown (2003-2005).
The Mountain Hawks placed 21st in last year’s men’s race, with freshman Dan McClimon leading the way. McClimon finished 69th overall with a time of 25:36. The Brown and White will be looking to build on last year’s success with all of its finishers returning for the 2008 Run.
On the women’s side, Princeton comes into the Brooks Paul Short Run as the two-time defending champion. Four other teams have won back to back titles since women began competing in 1981, with Penn State completing the repeat twice, in 1981-1982 and 2001-2002. Georgetown, Villanova and Providence have also won consecutive women’s titles.
The Lehigh women’s team finished 32nd overall in 2007, with Shannon Alejandro putting up the top time for the Brown and White. Alejandro finished 47th overall with a time of 21:45. Like the men, all of last year’s finishers are returning for the Mountain Hawks on the women’s side. They will also be turning to freshman Katherine Pierce, who has already been named Patriot League Rookie of the Week, to help them improve on last year’s ranking.
The Brooks Paul Short Run began in 1969, when Hall of Fame Lehigh coach John Covert brought seven teams to race in honor of the late Paul Short. Short was Lehigh’s business manager of athletics, as well as a cross country enthusiast.
This year’s event will consist of 12 races. The Division-I men’s competition will kick things off at 11 a.m., followed by the women’s race at 11:45 a.m. Division-I junior varsity competitors and non D-I athletes will wrap up the collegiate portion of the run.
The High School competitions will begin at 3:15 p.m. with the brown section boys’ championship and the girls’ championship at 3:45. The boys and girls white section championships and junior varsity boys and girls races will conclude the day’s competition. All high school races will consist of a five-kilometer run.
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2008 Lehigh University Brooks Paul Short Run Race Schedule |
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11:00 AM |
Ranked & D-I Men’s College Championship 8K |
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11:45 AM |
Ranked & D-I Women’s College Championship 6K |
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12:15 PM |
JV/Open Men’s College 8K |
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1:45 PM |
JV/Open Women’s College 6K |
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1:45 PM |
Non D-I Men’s College 8K |
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2:30 PM |
Non D-I Women’s College 6K |
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3:15 PM |
High School Brown Section Boys’ Championship 5K |
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5:00 PM |
High School Brown Section girls’ Championship 5K |
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4:15 PM |
High School White Section Boys’ Championship 5K |
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4:45 PM |
High School White Section Girls’ Championship 5K |
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5:15 PM |
High School JV Boys’ 5K |
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5:45 PM |
High School JV Girls’ 5K |
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