By Carl Zielinski
Gargoyle staff reporter
Posted Friday, Sept. 15, 2006, The OG, sports

URBANA — After a third-place finish at last weekend's Peoria Woodruff Invitational, the Uni girls cross country team is now ranked No. 3 in the state among Class A teams.

The ranking, by the online publication Illinois Prep Top Times, comes as a major improvement over last week, when the girls were not listed at all in the Class A top 15. Head coach Doug Mynatt said this was the highest ranking his girls teams have had since he took over the program in 1995.

IPTT had this comment about the Illineks: “A surprise team last weekend at Woodruff. Look for this team to improve as the season goes on.”

Also, the girls are now placed above defending state champs Winnebago, who are ranked No. 4.

Rockford Lutheran occupies the top spot, followed by Elmwood/Brimfield ( a co-op between Elmwood and Brimfield high schools). Those teams finished finished first and second respectively at the Woodruff Invite. The gap between Elmwood/Brimfield and Uni at the meet was only five points.

The girls will look to maintain or improve their ranking at the Tuscola Invitational Saturday. The meet is scheduled to include Tri-Valley, ranked No. 9 in the state.

2006 VARSITY RESULTS
(Meets at the U of I Illini Meadows in bold; courses are three miles unless otherwise indicated)

Aug. 29: Kickapoo Kickoff Classic, 1st (27 pts)
Top Uni runner: Elizabeth Russell, 1st overall (20:34)

Sept. 2: Chrisman Cowchip Classic, 2nd (18 pts)
Top Uni runner: Michelle Mehnert, 2nd in No. 2 flight (19:57)

Sept. 5: Twin City Championship, 1st (32 pts)
Top Uni runner: Michelle Mehnert, 1st overall (20:29)

Sept. 9: Peoria Woodruff Invitational, 3rd (122 pts)
Top Uni runner: Michelle Mehnert, 8th overall (19:34)

Sept. 12: Home Meet, 1st (16 pts)
Top Uni runner: Shivani Khanna, 1st overall (20:46)