Full Results (PDF)
Senior Erik Peterson captured the Panorama Farms Invitational title on Saturday, Sept. 26, leading the 123-man field in with a time of 23:45.9 for 8 kilometers.
"With the terrain as difficult as it was, [Peterson] just sat in the lead group and let the course take care of the field," head coach Matt Roe said. "He wanted to do as little work as possible and still win."
Peterson, an All-American in cross country, sat in third for most of the race before moving up to pace the Bulldogs for an eighth-place team finish. With his win, he also defeated fellow All-Americans Lawrence Kipkoech of Campbell, who took second, and Brandon Doughty of Oklahoma, who finished in third.
On the Butler side, Peterson was followed by sophomore Bobby Johnson who took 43rd in 25:05.6; redshirt freshman Johnny Leverenz, who clocked 25:19.4 for 54th; and first-year Jacob Priddey, who was 64th in 25:35.2. Freshman Eric Baugh crossed the finish line in 24:45.0 to round out the scorers in 70th.
"We are obviously really young, with nearly all our runners either freshmen or sophomores," Roe said. "They are learning to simultaneously train and race at a high level."
Sophomore Chris O'Brien was 72nd with a time of 25:52.0, while classmate Matt Lumbar took 79th in 26:02.3.
Butler scored 212 points as a team.
"It's going to take some time, and today we showed our youth a bit. "(But) overall, I believe this group will be capable in the long run."
Hosts Virginia, currently ranked ninth in the nation, won the team title with 41 points. Oklahoma followed in second with 58, and No. 18 Furman scored 88 for third.
Butler cross country's next appearance will be at the Notre Dame Invitational in South Bend, Indiana, on Friday, Oct. 2.
Contact: Beth Werge, bwerge@butler.edu
Photo courtesy of Matt Riley / UVA Media Relations
