Streak Stays Intact; Razorback Cross Country Wins 16th Consecutive SEC Championship
Baton Rouge, La. -- Led by senior Seth Summerside's runner-up finish, Arkansas cross country won its 16th SEC and 33rd conference cross country title. The victory also gives Arkansas and head coach John McDonnell their 80th conference title including cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field.
"We have always had the right type of kids and we also had people to fill in for seniors who graduate," McDonnell said. "That's special. I tell people all the time, we have won 42 national championships but they haven't been in a row. When you win 33 of anything in a row, to me there's nothing more special then that. In my heart, that's my greatest achievement as a coach."
Arkansas finished the 8K race with a team point total of 21. Florida was second with 73 points and the Alabama Crimson Tide rounded out the top three with 75 points.
Summerside crossed the line second behind Ole Miss' Barnabus Kirui, the race winner, with a time of 23:56.59. Kirui won the race with a time of 23:53.24. It is the first meet this season where Summerside was the top Razorback finisher. He also improved his SEC finish from 2005 (15th) by 13 places.
"We all had a plan," Summerside said. "My plan was to hang back and let them come to me. It turned out the way we wanted it to. Thankfully, everyone ran well and we kept the tradition alive."
Team work was a main theme through out today's race. The Razorbacks finished four harriers in the top five, five in the top 7, seven in the top 21 and eight in the top 26.
"We thought we were ready to run," McDonnell said. "We knew that Alabama and Florida had very good teams. It was a tremendous race and we took it out hard at the beginning. We did exactly what we wanted to do. Our front runner Peter Kosgei set a really hard pace and busted up the field. He ended up paying for it later but that's what being a team is all about. That's what we are all about."
On the heels on Summerside were senior Peter Kosgei, who led the pack for most of the race, with a third-place finish and a time of 23:57.81 and junior Shawn Forrest was fourth with his clocking of 23:58.33.
Freshman Scott MacPherson made his SEC cross country championship debut a memorable one. Rounding out the top five, he finished fifth with a time of 24:06.7.
Sophomore captain Kenny Cormier rounded out the UA scorers with a seventh-place finish and an 8K time of 24:16.83.
Summerside, Kosgei, Forrest, MacPherson and Cormier earned All-SEC honors.
"We knew we were going to have to pull together as a team," Summerside said. "That was the most important thing. It was definitely going to be a challenge. We knew it and we accepted it. We just wanted to keep the tradition alive."
Adam Perkins finished 19th with a clocking of 24:56.13. Jonathan Norris crossed the line in 25:00.06, good for a 21st-place finish. Colin Costello was 26th with a time of 25:15.20.
Next up for the Razorbacks is the NCAA South Central Regional Championships in Waco, Texas, Nov. 11. A top two team finish will advance Arkansas to the NCAA Championships in Terre Haute, Ind., Nov. 20.
11 is sweet, Lady'Backs dominate SEC Championships
The Lady Razorbacks tallied the second-lowest point score in conference history behind its historic 1999 team by scoring 17 points, two points away from the record and a perfect score. Arkansas' score of 17 points was 46 ahead of second-place Georgia (63) while three-time defending champion Tennessee (74) finished third. Florida (96) and Mississippi State (160) rounded out the top five. Upshaw's individual victory makes her the first freshman to take the individual crown since Alabama freshman Becki Wells in 1993.
"One of the weapons that we have had all year is that we have interchangeable parts," Arkansas head coach Lance Harter said. "Someone asked me before the race who will be your frontrunner and I told them that I had no idea. We are all freshmen and sophomores and our first junior was eighth today. It's a young crew and we are awfully excited about this."
Arkansas' team title is its SEC record 11th conference crown. Since joining the league in the fall of 1991, Arkansas has claimed 11 of the 16 SEC championships. Tennessee is second on the list with five team titles with their first coming in 1983. The Lady Razorback victory also keeps the team undefeated this season with a perfect 77-0-0 team record.
The Lady Razorbacks battled soggy conditions throughout the course, but managed to get established early in the race which eventually led to eight of their 10 runners earning either first or second-team all-conference honors. Upshaw was the front runner, leading a 1-2-3-5-6 scoring finish for the Lady Razorbacks. Non-scorers for Arkansas finished 9-11-14-16-29. Upshaw's time of 20:14.90 over the 6,000-meter course is a personal best for the distance an even more impressive accomplishment when considering the course conditions and hills that came into play at several points throughout the race.
"She's really special and we knew that when we recruited her," Harter said about Upshaw. "What we saw today is just the tip of the iceberg. Brooke is the ultimate competitor. The person that I can compare her to most is former Lady Razorback Deena Drossin. What you see in workouts is one thing, but when it comes to race time that is something else."
At the start, Arkansas began in the middle of the pack, but quickly fanned out and allowed its team to move into the front pack. By the one-mile mark, the Lady Razorbacks had established a united front with sophomore Christine Kalmer, Upshaw and Tennessee sophomore Sarah Bowman making up the top three and seven other Lady Razorbacks among the top 20.
Midway through the race it became apparent that it would be a two-person battle as Upshaw and Bowman created distance between themselves and the field. Heading into the final major uphill climb, Upshaw held a two-stride lead over the Tennessee phenom, but took a commanding lead by the top of the climb as Bowman struggled with the stretch.
Down the home stretch, Upshaw was well out in front and her teammates had closed the gap on Bowman who would eventually fall to seventh place overall. Sophomore Dacia Barr would pass Kalmer over the final strides to finish second with Kalmer third. Georgia's Jill Steffens would claim fourth followed by freshman Dani Parry and sophomore Denise Bargiachi who all earned first-team all-SEC honors.
Making up the second-team all-conference were freshman Miranda Walker and junior Beth Fahey. Sophomore Kelly Vrshek just missed the top 14.
For more information about Lady Razorback cross country or about Arkansas women's athletics, please go to LADYBACKS.COM.
POST-MEET QUOTES
John McDonnell (Men's Head Coach), Arkansas
On the race... "I feel a lot better after it's over. I felt we were ready to run. We knew that Alabama and Florida had very good teams with front runners. We felt we were a better, a deeper team than both Alabama and Florida. It was a tremendous race. We took them hard in the beginning and made them run and it paid off."
On their winning tradition... "We've been fortunate, getting the right type of kids, and always having people to fill in when guys graduate."
On winning 33 conference championships in a row... "That's special. I tell people all the time that we've won 42 national championships, but they haven't been in a row. When you win 33 of anything in a row, there's nothing more special than that. Even though it's only a conference championship, in my heart that's my greatest achievement as a coach."
Barnabas Kirui, Ole Miss – Men's Champion
On if he got out to an early lead... "I did not go real early. I was waiting to see the guys, how they were responding. I wasn't technically sure, but I said, 'Let me just try to take a lead and see how it goes.' I was impressed that nobody was really close, and that motivated me to push it more."
On if we was surprised to be leading so early... "I didn't expect to be that in the lead the last two miles, so I was really expecting to take the lead from one and a half miles. But in really pulling away I just wanted to try so that I could go back and see from around. When I made that move, it worked out, so I decided just to go."
On how it feels to win the SEC championship as a freshman... "I feel so great. If there's one thing I've longed for, it's to hear that somebody from Ole Miss wins the SEC because I find that to be a pride for my school, just winning and being the fastest. I've always been telling me teammates that is one thing I long for and to hear the words 'And the winner from Ole Miss,' and I'm glad I heard that today."
Lance Harter (Women's Head Coach), Arkansas
Opening Statement "LSU did a great job of hosting this event. Obviously the weather didn't cooperate, but everything else that was within their power was great. They did a fantastic job, there's a great crowd out here and we're pleased to be able to have a part in it."
On having seven finishers in the top ten... "I know they ran really well. One of the weapons that we've had all year is that we've had interchangeable parts. Somebody will say 'Who will be the front runner today?' and I say 'I have no clue.' It could be any one of five. Our ten just rotate amongst each other. The toughest part now is trying to figure out who's going to be my seven to go to the regional meet and the national meet, because they run so close together. We're all freshmen and sophomores; our first junior was eighth for us. It's a young crew, all freshmen and sophomores and they're really excited about the future. So am I."
On the first place finisher, Arkansas runner Brooke Upshaw... "She's really special. We knew that in high school when we recruited her. She and her teammate Miranda Walker are both very unique individuals in the respect that I think that they're long term futures are very bright. I'm talking about long, long term; they've both got great weapons to add to USA Track and Field. I think that what we saw today was just the tip of the iceberg. They're going to do some great things, maybe in the next couple of weeks, hopefully, then on into track and field and obviously through the years to come in cross country."
Brooke Upshaw, Arkansas – Women's Champion
On the track conditions... "It was a little muddy, but the weather was very nice. It was great."
On how she felt going into the race... "I felt pretty good, tired because it was a race. But I felt good today."
On if she led from the outset... "I tried to get out. I got a little bit behind, but I just tried to work up with the rest of my team because they all got out there. I just tried to run with them because I knew if we ran in a pack we would be in good shape, so I just wanted to run with the rest of my team."
On how it feels to know her team as a whole finished well... "It's very good. That's definitely what we wanted to do, so we wanted to all run as a pack. We knew we would be in good shape if we could do that."
On if she expected to win as a freshman... "No, not at all."