SOUTHEAST WOMEN PLACE SECOND IN 24-TEAM CROSS COUNTRY MEET

ST. LOUIS -- Southern Illinois simply proved too tough for Southeast Missouri State University's women's cross country squad Saturday.

Competing in the 24-team All-Missouri Border State Championship hosted by Washington University, SIU rolled to victory with 33 points. Southeast was second with 75 points, well ahead of Truman State's 129.

More than 200 runners took part in the meet that consisted primarily of the state's Division II programs, with a handful of Division I squads thrown into the mix.

"SIU is very strong," said Southeast coach Joey Haines. "But I was real happy with our performance. We wanted to beat SIU, but we ran well and they're just running better than we are."

Tammy Wenkel was Southeast's top finisher, placing seventh with a time of 17:56.1 over the 3.1-mile course.

Amy Arteme was ninth in 18:04.4 while Celeste Ramsey was 16th with a career-best 18:30.

Other Otahkian finishers were: 19. Anna Verseman 18:35.3; 24. Leslie McNamara 18:41.7; 28. Christy Williams 18:47.7; 60. Jessie Thompson 19:24.1; and 72. Laura VanHoevelak 19:42.6.

Southeast's men and women will be in action at home next Saturday during the four-team Southeast Invitational at Capaha Park. Also competing will be Murray State, Tennessee-Martin and Arkansas State.

The women's race will begin at 10:30 a.m., followed by the men's race at 11 a.m.

There will also be open races in conjunction with the meet. At 10 a.m., youngsters in grades 1-6 will have a one-mile run. Then at 11:30 a.m., there will be a race for junior high ages through 50-and-over.

The top three finishers in each age group receive Southeast cross country T-shirts. The entry fee is $5. For more information, call the Southeast track office at 290-5207.