For Karen Harvey, there is only one word to describe the Illinois women’s cross country team’s eighth-place finish at the NCAA Championships on Nov. 20.

The race, she says, was bittersweet. Illinois, making its third consecutive nationals appearance, finished with 304 points, just four points out of sixth place.

But had the Illini gotten a decent performance out of their fifth runner, they could have finished as high as fourth place – surpassing last year’s program-best fifth-place finish – Harvey said.

“Had we had (2005 Big Ten Freshman of the Year) Katie Engel not get strep throat and our fifth runner step up and run normal, we would have been fourth (place), easy,” Harvey said.

Freshman Angela Bizzarri led the Illini and finished in 24th place with a time of 21:18 for the 6K race. Bizzarri’s finish was good enough to earn All-American honors, a distinction awarded to the top 30 runners.

Senior Cassie Hunt, a five-time All-American in cross country and track and field, missed the honor by just two places, finishing with a time of 21:31.

Throughout the 2006 season, Hunt, the 2005 Big Ten Athlete of the Year, had trouble putting together the types of races she did last season. Hunt started the season weeks behind in training after competing at the NCAA Track and Field Championships in June. Although Hunt just missed the All-American cut, Harvey said it speaks volumes about Hunt’s talent level.

“She put together a solid race,” Harvey said about Hunt’s last Illinois cross country race.

“Cassie learned a lot about herself this season. She needed to get on a roll, and she never did. (At nationals), she put herself out there for her team,” she added.

Freshman Stephanie Baliga, a walk-on, finished in 52nd place with a time of 21:46, while senior Stephanie Simms closed out her Illinois cross country career with a 74th-place overall finish in a time of 21:54.

Junior Maggie Carroll rounded out the Illini’s top five runners with a 135th-place finish and time of 22:40. Freshman Shannon Phelan and junior Rachel Hernandez also competed for the Illini.

Although the Illini didn’t get top performances from its top five runners, Harvey said she was pleased with what she saw from Illinois’ top four finishers.

“Not only did our top four runners run well and prove they were talented, but proved they were tough,” Harvey said.

Proving their toughness was easier said than done when it came to the race conditions. The LaVern Gibson Championship Course was filled with mud and pools of standing water.

“The conditions were terrible. You saw kids who should have finished in the top five, top 10, finish in 50th and 60th,” Harvey said.

Stanford captured its third title in the past four years and Colorado finished in second place, while Texas Tech sophomore Sally Kipyego won the individual title. All six Big Ten schools participating in the race finished in the top 20 with Michigan finishing in third place and Wisconsin coming in fourth.

After three top-10 finishes in the last three years, Harvey is set on keeping the bar high, even though the Illini are losing Hunt and Simms.

“Eighth (place) is not horrible,” Harvey said, hoping for better. “It’s just what could have been.”