CMU men’s cross-country finishes 17th at Pre-Nationals

Sophomore Tecumseh Adams finished 17th at Pre-Nationals in Terre Haute Ind. on Sunday.

It would be a foreshadowing of how the Central Michigan men’s cross-country team finished. It finished 17th out of 35 teams and first among Mid-American Conference schools that included Ohio and Toledo.

Ohio finished 19th and Toledo 34th.

Adams led his teammates with a time of 24:33.

“It excites me when you get a freshman or sophomore with talent like that,” Randolph said. “It’s even more exciting when they can maintain that level. Adams is having fun and it’s our job to manage the pressure that comes with the talent.”

Juniors Jason Drudge and Matt Lutzke finished 92nd and 111th.

Randolph acknowledged that Lutzke really came through for the team.

“Matt Lutzke was in a really tough position with two miles left,” Randolph said. “He really came through after battling some things the past couple of weeks. We finished 17th, but it could have been a lot worse if not for Matt.”

Redshirt Freshmen Kyle Stacks and Tanner Pesonen finished within seconds of each other at 25:59 and 26:01. They placed 131st and 137th.

Stacks was a key member of the team in just his second collegiate meet.

“Coach Kaczor is doing a good job of working with Kyle and building his mind and body confidence,” Randolph said. “Stacks will be a key maker or breaker for us in the future.”

While pleased by placing first among MAC schools, Randolph’s focus was already on the MAC Championship meet in 13 days.

“It only matters for us if we beat the MAC teams at the next meet,” Randolph said. “We need to beat Eastern Michigan for the team to get really excited. We have 13 days to start putting the mental pieces together because the physical pieces are already there.”