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  Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Cross Country 		SIUE Men's Cross Country
SIUE Athletics
Cougar Ruler

Kyle Cameron
Kyle Cameron

Kayla Brown
Kayla Brown

 August 29, 2007

2008 Men's Schedule
2008 Women's Schedule

Cougars Open 2008 Season
          EDWARDSVILLE, ILL. -- Southern Illinois University Edwardsville cross country is looking for a good season under third-year coach David Astrauskas.
          The SIUE cross country teams, like the rest of the athletics department, are making the transition to the NCAA Division I level.
          "As a team, we are ready for the challenge," Astrauskas said. "The surroundings of Division I runners is similar to what we were use to in Division II, just faster times in competition."
          The top returning runner for the men's team is CoSIDA Academic All-American Kyle Cameron (Eats Moline). Last season, the senior finished with a third-place finish at the Eastern Illinois Panther Open with a time of 25 minutes, 17.43 seconds, the fastest time on the team. Cameron placed 29th at the NCAA Regionals with a time of 32:41.63.
          "We are looking for Kyle to continue to be the top runner and be the team leader," Astrauskas said.
          The other runner to look for to make some noise for the Cougars is sophomore Shawn Dillard (Granite City). Dillard's top finish in 2007 was 27th at the Bradley Open with a time of 27:05. During the 2007 NCAA Regionals, Dillard finished 98th with a time of 34:42.90.
          "Shawn had a solid freshman season, I am excited to see the improvements in times," Astrauskas said.
          On the women's side, the cross country team will look to Kayla Brown (Petersburg) to be the leader of the pack. Brown finished four times last seasons in the top 25. Brown took first place at the Saluki Invitational in 18:28.60.
          "Kayla is our No. 1 runner for the women's team," said Astrauskas. "She has been competitive at every meet she competes in."
          SIUE teams will be competing this weekend at the Big River Running Early Bird at Washington (Mo.) in St. Louis. The men run at 9 a.m. followed by the women at 9:30 a.m.
                    -siue cougars-