Lady'Backs Head to Joplin

FAYETTEVILLE – Coming off a pair of solid performances, the 18th-ranked University of Arkansas Lady Razorback cross country team heads to Joplin, Mo., to participate in the Missouri Southern Stampede on Saturday morning, September 18, at 9:00 AM.

Bringing five Lady Razorbacks to the meet, Arkansas is resting many of its front runners and giving its role players a chance to shine. Scheduled to compete for the Lady Razorbacks are juniors Lea Carruthers and Jessie Gordon, sophomore Laura Kerr and freshmen Beth Fahey and Tiffany Redlarczyk.

“This is a great opportunity to give some people a chance to rest,” Arkansas head coach Lance Harter said. “Typically this weekend is an off week for us, except for a couple of runners, but we have such depth this year that we are sending a team up to Joplin. I’m interested to see how we compete against some good teams.”

One of the top teams to make the journey to Joplin is cross-border foe Southwest Missouri State University who is always ready to take on a challenge. Other schools that venture to the show me state are to include Tulsa, Abilene Christian, Drury, Oral Roberts and Oklahoma State. The Lady Razorbacks start things off at 9:00 a.m. followed by a men’s race, two high school competitions and an open “fun” run.

Arkansas’ participation could be a battle for a spot on the travel roster for later in the season. With six solid runners, the Lady’Backs are looking for one or two additional bodies to complete their travel roster, especially at the Southeastern Conference and NCAA Regional Championships. In 2003, Arkansas’ seventh runner was vital to the Lady Razorbacks pack theory.

While the Joplin, Mo., course may be unfamiliar territory to most of the participants at the 2004 meet, Arkansas’ Kerr is quite accustomed to the lay of the land. Kerr was the 26th-place finisher out of 186 competitors at the 2003 race which was attended by just three Lady Razorbacks. Kerr’s time for the 5,000-meter course was 18:45.40, a mark she wishes to improve on.

For more information about Lady Razorback cross country please visit Arkansas women’s athletics home on the web at www.ladybacks.com.