GVSU's Chris Hammer and HC's Tim Jagielski Earn 2008 Men's Cross Country Postseason Awards

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Bay City, Mich.--Grand Valley State's Chris Hammer (Troy, Mich./Athens) was named the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's cross country "Runner of the Year", and Hillsdale's Tim Jagielski (Camden, Mich./Waldron) earned "Freshman of the Year" honors after their outstanding performances at the GLIAC Cross Country Championship held at the Tanglewood Marsh Golf Course, Sault Ste. Marie, Mich on Saturday, Oct. 25. "Coach of Year" honors go to Jerry Baltes of Grand Valley State University.

Runner of the Year
Chris Hammer - Grand Valley State University
Grand Valley State's senior Chris Hammer (Troy, Mich./Athens) was named the GLIAC Runner of the Year after winning the 8K race at the GLIAC Championships with a time of 25:00. He was one of four Lakers to finish in the top-10, helping GVSU earn its seventh consecutive team title with a score of 31 points. Hammer totaled a second-place finish at the Michigan Intercollegiates 8K in Milford, Mich. on Oct. 10 with a time of 25:42. At the Notre Dame Invitational in South Bend, Ind. on Oct. 3, Hammer finished in 16th place with a time of 25:19.

Freshman of the Year
Tim Jagielski - Hillsdale College
Hillsdale College freshman Tim Jagielski (Camden, Mich./Waldron) finished in second palce overall at the 2008 GLIAC Cross Country Championships in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. Jagielski, a runner from Hillsdale County's Waldron High School, was the team's top finisher in every meet he competed in this season. He has consistently finished his races in the low 25-minute range, and is the first freshman in the program to record as many first-place finishes among the team in many years. Jagielski was a Division IV state cross country champion for Waldron High School, and earned several All-State accolades as a prep track athlete for the Spartans.

 
Coach of the Year
Jerry Baltes - Grand Valley State University
Grand Valley State head coach Jerry Baltes guided the men's cross country team to its' seventh straight GLIAC championship. It is also the fourth consecutive year that GVSU has earned the individual title, as senior Chris Hammer was named GLIAC Runner of the Year by finishing first with a time of 25:00. The Lakers had all seven runners place in the top-15, including four runners tallying top-10 finishes. Grand Valley State looks to defend its' regional title in two weeks.

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--Cross Country Weekly Notes--

Ashland - The Eagles were third at last week's GLIAC championships. Sophomore Matt Stratman (Chardon, OH) had AU's best finish. He was 14th on the 8K course (25:28.7). Sophomore Brock Weaver (Ashland, OH) was 16th (25:32.5) and senior Jeremy Trein (Reynoldsburg, OH) was 19th. In last week's national rankings, the Eagles were 21st.

Ferris - The Ferris State University men's cross country team finished 10th at the 2008 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Championships held Saturday (Oct. 25) at Tanglewood Marsh Golf Course in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. The league meet was hosted by Lake Superior State University for the first time since 1998. The Bulldogs finished 10th overall with 239 points among the 11 competing teams. Freshman Tyler Crossman led FSU by finishing 31st overall (26:01.0). Sophomore Alex Best came in 41st (26;14.7), senior Mike Mangieri placed 49th (26:34.1), junior Matt Jozwiak was 57th (26:53.9) and junior Brian Reynolds finished 61st (27:15.8). Junior Darby Davila was 69th (28:06.6) and freshman Ethan Earnst wound up 76th (29:23.2) for FSU. The Bulldogs will next host the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Championships slated for Saturday, Nov. 8, at FSU's Katke Golf Course in Big Rapids, Mich. Action begins with the men's 10K race at 11 a.m. (EDT) followed by the women's 6K event at 12 p.m. (EDT).

Findlay - The University of Findlay men's cross country team competed at the 2008 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Championship on Saturday, October 25 in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. The men came in ninth at 238. The men, who are ranked ninth in the Midwest Region, were led by Kyle Tweed who finished 30th with a time of 25:56.8. Mike Andreski (26:11.2), Craig Wolfe (26:16.0), Jordan Kirwen (27:16.3), Cory Irwin (27:33.0), Shawn Caruso (28:34.3) and Tom Brown (30:09.8) also competed for the Oilers.

Grand Valley State - The Grand Valley State men's cross country team took home a first-place finish at the GLIAC Championships on Saturday (Oct. 25) in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. The Lakers had a team score of 31 points, finishing well ahead of Wayne State (69) and Ashland (90).The Lakers totaled their seventh consecutive GLIAC title and it is the fourth year in a row that GVSU has earned the individual title, as Chris Hammer secured a first-place finish with a time of 25:00. Hammer was also named the GLIAC Runner of the Year. For GVSU, the future also looks bright, as eight of the top 10 runners have freshman eligibility.Grand Valley State's average time was 25:09.Tyler Emmorey notched a third-place finish at 25:03 for GVSU, as Ryan Toth came in sixth at 25:09.Four more Lakers controlled spots 10-13. Jeff Nordquist (10th) finished with a time of 25:17, Ross Faasse (11th) was right behind at 25:18, Paul Zielinski (12th) finished at 25:22, and Nathan Knisely (13th) crossed the line at 25:23.

Hillsdale - Freshman Tim Jagielski finished second overall at Saturday's conference championships, held on the campus of Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. His time of 25:03 was just three seconds away from first place, and good enough to earn him Freshman of the Year honors as well as being named First-Team All-Conference.The Charger men took fourth place overall at the GLIAC meet with 95 points. Timothy Howse was the second-place runner on the team and 16th overall with a time of 25:28.Teammate Britton Deuel wasn't far behind, taking 18th with a time of 25:34.

Lake Superior State - Senior Luke Allen (Manistee, Mich.), sophomore Lucas Pease (Bellevue, Mich.) and freshman Andy Gaul (Port Huron, Mich.) led the LSSU men's team at the 2008 GLIAC Championship held at Tanglewood Marsh Golf Course in Sault Ste. Marie. Allen was 64th in 27:31.5, while Pease was 66th among top-seven scorers (130th overall) with a time of 27:34.4 and Gaul was 67th (197th overall) in 27:40.1. The Lakers finished 11th in the team standings with 340 points.

Michigan Tech - Michigan Tech tied for sixth place at the 2008 GLIAC Championships with 183 points. Sophomore Brian Stetter, who has been the team's top runner all season, led the team with an 18th place finish in 25:36.2. The top seven runners all posted a personal best on the day. The men will race its longest race of the season (10-kilometers) Nov. 8 at the NCAA Regionals hosted by Ferris State.

Northwood - The Northwood University men's cross country team took part in the GLIAC Championships Saturday morning (October 25). Northwood placed eighth overall with 224 points. Josh Jerome (Shepherd, Mich.) was the top finisher for the Timberwolves on the 8K course with a time of 25:42.9. Derek Kraus (Holland, Mich./West Ottawa) was 54th overall at 26:01.2, while Sam Watson (Rochester, Mich.) finished 101st at 26:27.5

Saginaw Valley State - The Saginaw Valley State University men's cross country team finished in fifth place at the 2008 GLIAC Championships held on the campus of Lake Superior State University today (Oct. 25). The Cardinals were led by junior Steve Genther (Laingsburg, Mich.) who finished in ninth place overall with a time of 25:14. Junior, Cortland Seaver (Freeland, Mich.) finished 27th with a time of 25:51, while sophomore Derek Stone (Metamora, Mich./Lapeer East HS) finished in 29th just four seconds back. Jesse Evans (Cheboygan, Mich.) finished in 50th with a 26:35 and senior Len Weddel (East Tawas, Mich./Tawas Area HS) rounded out the top five for the Cardinals in 51st with a 26:38.The Cardinals will now prepare for the NCAA Regional meet to be held at Ferris State on November 8th.

Tiffin - Tiffin University's men's cross country team finished 6th of 11 teams at the GLIAC Championships. Jeremy Lee earned All-Conference honors with his 7th place finish in 25:12.2, while Jason Bumb finished in 33rd place in 26:03.6. Charles Faerber and Thomas Buxton finished together in 45th and 46th place, respectively, while Dominique O'Neill was 52nd.

Wayne State - The Wayne State University Men's Cross Country team (69 points) took second place behind Grand Valley State University (31 points) at the much-anticipated GLIAC Championships in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. Abdullah Saleh (Dearborn, Mich./Fordson) and Dan Kapadia (Canton, Mich./Salem) were the first Warriors to cross the finish line placing fourth and fifth. Saleh ran 25:04.0 while Kapadia ran 25:06.8. Sam Breen (Brownstown, Mich./Woodhaven) was the next to finish placing 8th with a personal best time of 25:14.2. Before today, Breen's best 8k time this season was 26:30. Chris Tassen (Troy, Mich./Athens), Kevin deBear (Plymouth, Mich./Salem), Nick Krol (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Lahser) and Pat Webster (Sterling Heights, Mich./Henry Ford II) each ran their best time of the 2008 season. Taassan finished 24th (25:45.8), deBear took 28th (25:52.7) and Krol placed 34th (26:06.8). Webster's time of 26:10.0 (38th place) was a career best. The Warriors will continue competition on Saturday November 8 at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional held in Big Rapids, Mich. The race is scheduled to begin at 11:00 a.m.