Badgers Gear Up for Jim Drews Invitational
October 14, 2005 | Men's Cross Country
The No. 2 Wisconsin men's cross country team heads to West Salem, Wis., Saturday to run in the 25th annual Jim Drews Invitational. The race kicks off at 10:30 a.m. at the Maple Grove Country Club.
The Badgers are looking for their third consecutive Jim Drews title. Last year, the Badgers tallied 30 points and placed five runners in the top 10. Senior Simon Bairu placed fourth with a time 24:42.8 while classmate Bobby Lockhart finished seventh with a time of 24:44.3. Junior Chris Solinsky's time of 24:44.4 followed close behind for an eighth-place finish.
In 2003, the Badgers dominated the Drews by placing four runners in the top five and tallied a meet-best 19 points. Former Badger Josh Spiker won the Invitational with a time of 24:41.0 while junior Tim Nelson placed third with a time of 24:46.2. Bairu and Solinsky followed at fourth and fifth place, respectively.
This year, 800 runners are set to compete in the 22-team Invitational. The Badgers will compete against Big Ten rival, No. 20 Minnesota, along with many other Division I, II and III teams. Besides Wisconsin and Minnesota, Iowa State, South Dakota State University, University of California Riverside and North Dakota State University will represent Division I while University of Minnesota-Duluth and Winona State University (Minn.) represent Division II. Many ranked Division III teams are also set to compete including host, No. 2 UW-La Crosse, No. 4 Haverford College, No. 5 Nebraska Wesleyan University, No. 8 Wartburg College (Iowa), No. 9 Tufts University (Mass.), No. 18 Hamline University (Minn.) and UW-Platteville who is tied for 19th.
The Jim Drews Invitational is Wisconsin's last test before it heads to the Big Ten Championships. The Badgers have won the last six Big Ten Championships and are on task for a seventh when they head to Minneapolis, Minn., on Oct. 30 for the meet.
Check back to uwbadgers.com for results from the Jim Drews and for more on Wisconsin cross country.
