Eastern Michigan University senior Terefe Ejigu definitely made his mark Friday at the University of Toledo’s Bubble Buster Invitational as he earned his second consecutive first-place finish for the Eagle’s cross country team. He took first last week at the Spartan Invitational with a time of 24:28.
This week, Ejigu was also named Mid-American Conference Men’s Runner of the Week and MAC Male Scholar of the Week.
During the UT Bubble Buster, Ejigu ran at a 4:46 pace and finished with a time of 19:01.6. Ejigu wasn’t the only EMU athlete that finished in the top 20 though. Sophomore Daryl Smith ran at a 4:53 pace with a finishing time of 19:29.8 which was good for a twelfth place finish. Junior Harry Dixon finished with a time of 19:42.4 earning him fifteenth place.
Sophomore Warren Witchell and freshman Willy Fink rounded out the top 20 for EMU with Witchell finishing eighteenth with a time of 19:54.0 and Fink finishing twentieth with a time of 19:54.6. The team as a whole performed well in the invitational finishing second overall behind the Syracuse Orangemen, who are ranked 13th in the nation.
Syracuse finished first place at the invitational after having nine athletes finish in the top ten right behind Ejigu. Teams finishing behind EMU were San Francisco, Toledo, Charlotte and Ohio.
The next cross country meet will be Friday, Sept. 28 when the team travels to South Bend, Ind. to participate in the Notre Dame Invitational.