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NCAA D1 XC Midwest Regional - Oklahoma State Wins Both Team TitlesPublished by
Oklahoma State Demonstrates 'Restraint' On The Way To 25-Point Performance At Regional; OSU Women Hold Off Minnesota, 61-76 By David Woods for DyeStat RESULTS | Auto Qualifiers - Oklahoma State men, Iowa State men; Oklahoma State women, Minnesota women PEORIA, Ill. – Oklahoma State might have been “overcooked” ahead of the Big 12 cross-country meet, Dave Smith said. But the chef went back to the kitchen, and now the Cowboys are preparing for another pre-Thanksgiving feast. Despite holding out two runners and urging restraint for everyone else, coach Smith’s No. 2-ranked Cowboys were dominating with a 25-point score to win the Midwest Regional in men’s cross-country Friday at Newman Golf Course. No. 4 Iowa State claimed the other team berth for the NCAA Championships at Verona, Wis., taking second with 43 points. Tulsa was third with 124 and Illinois State fourth with 179. Led by repeat winner Denis Kipngetich, the Cowboys finished 1-2-6-7-12 (before a fifth-place individual was displaced). On a perfect day for running – sunny, near-windless, temperatures in high 50s, firm footing – Kipngetich covered a rolling 10,000-meter course in 28 minutes, 51.46 seconds. Laban Kipkemboi was second in 29:06.23. Big 12 champion Brian Musau was sixth in 29:17.32 and Victor Shitsama seventh in 29:17.36. Scorers were all Kenyans except for Ethiopia-born Adisu Guadie of Israel in 12th. “We didn’t go all out. We took it easy, like 60 percent,” Kipngetich said. Oklahoma State began so conservatively that it was in ninth place with 209 points at 2K. Every 2K thereafter, the score diminished, all in first place: 62, 41, 30 and finally 25. Then ranked No. 1, Oklahoma State was overtaken by BYU 41-52 in the Big 12 meet Nov. 1. Smith blamed the outcome on overtraining. “We should have pulled back a little sooner,” he said. “Now we're in this resting phase. I think we’re starting to see the fruits of that. We’re starting to come around.” Oklahoma State came close to duplicating its Midwest score of 19 from last year, when it won NCAAs over Northern Arizona 49-71. If not for a tiebreaker, the Cowboys would be seeking a third straight national championship. The Cowboys ran without two 1,500-meter standouts, Fouad Massaoudi (3:35) and Ryan Schoppe (3:37). Messaoudi was 10th in NCAA cross-country last year, and Schoppe anchored a winning distance medley relay at indoor NCAAs. Musau was as far back as 16th through 5K. “He was the one guy who did what he was supposed to do,” Smith said. Robin Kwemoi Bera and Said Mechaal, both of Iowa State, finished third and fourth in 29:09.34 and 29:09.35. The four individual NCAA spots went to Abraham Chelangam, Oral Roberts, fifth, 29:12.27; Thobias Cheruiyot, Oklahoma, eighth, 29:18.41; William Sinclair, Illinois State, ninth, 29:19.99; Carson Noecker, South Dakota State, 10th, 29:25.78. Cheruiyot led through 6K in 17:21.9. OSU, Minnesota top two women’s teams Oklahoma State also won the women’s regional, and with similar tactics. Eighth at 2K, the No. 19 Cowgirls surged to beat No. 23 Minnesota 61-76. Northwestern (which has no men’s team) was third with 103 and Iowa State fourth with 139. Oklahoma's Leah Jeruto, just ninth in the SEC after developing cramps, finished first in 19:42.87 by pulling away late from Ali Weimer of Minnesota. Weimer, third in the Big Ten, finished second in 19:48.85 after leading at 3K, 4K and 5K checkpoints. “Today I knew I didn’t need to do anything crazy,” Weimer said. “I didn’t need to go out there and run like I did at Big Ten’s. I just needed to keep within myself and do what I needed to do so I’m ready to roll next week.” Maelle Porcher of Iowa State was third in 19:52.75 and Josphine Mwaura of Oklahoma State fourth in 19:53.61. It took top six to secure individual NCAA spots: Nebraska sophomore Ali Bainbridge was fifth in 19:53.82 and Illinois’ Halle Hill sixth in 19:55.74. Hill was 16th in the Big Ten but would have been eighth if not for the presence of newcomers Oregon and Washington. Contact David Woods at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007. More news |