Sept. 5, 2008
Complete Results | Photo Gallery 
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue men's and women's cross country teams opened their seasons on Friday night, hosting the annual Great American Legends race at the Purdue Varsity Cross Country Course. The Boilermakers topped the women's race, while Miami University (Ohio) led the men's field.
Purdue junior standouts Kristin Phillips and Katie Morrical, christened the Boilermakers' new 5K layout of their home course, placing first and second in the women's race with times of 18:20.14 and 18:24.51, respectively. After Northwestern rookie Sophie Ewald crossed the line in third, Boilermaker sophomore Kristina Krasich continued the Purdue parade in fourth with a time of 19:02.02. Newcomers Stephanie Bonk and Katie Conrad rounded out the Boilermakers' top-five, respectively placing seventh and 10th with times of 19:14.52 and 19:27.09.
The Boilermaker women were solid throughout the ranks taking 14 of the top 30 spots in the race.
On the men's side, Miami followed the Purdue women's lead with a one-two finish from Pat Sovacool and Kevin Silver at 25:55.89 and 25:56.03. They rounded out their team placings with fifth, seventh and ninth places, all five finishing under 26:23.59. Running without three of their top projected runners, the Purdue men were led by rookie Cale Allen, who completed the newly designed 8K course in 26:36.10, good for 16th overall. Boilermaker sophomore Robert Shiflett came in 21st overall in 26:43.94, senior Steve Swank was 31st overall in 27:09.53, while rookie Ladd Mercer and sophomore Chase Kaufman shored up the top five.
Friday's race was Purdue's only outing on its home course before the 2008 NCAA Great Lakes Regional Championships, which the Boilermakers will host on Nov. 15. Purdue returns to action two weeks from today as the Old Gold and Black heads to Bloomington, Ind. for the Indiana Intercollegiate Championships, hosted by archrival Indiana University. The Purdue women look to defend their state title, while the men hope to climb a couple spots from last year's third-place finish.