TCU Cross Country Ready For Regional Meet
11/11/2003 12:00:00 AM | General
Nov. 11, 2003
The TCU men's and women's cross country teams travel to Waco, Texas on Saturday to compete in the South Central Regional Cross Country Championships. The men's 10K event gets underway at 10 a.m., while the women toe the starting line for their 6K race at 11:15 a.m. The top two teams in both races, along with the top three individuals, will advance to the NCAA Championships, which will be held in Waterloo, Iowa on Monday, November 24.
The TCU women's squad, coming off a second place finish at the Conference USA meet and ranked 30th in the most recent national poll, figure to be in the hunt for one of the national qualifying berths in the 6K race. The Frogs have been led all season by junior Mary Kinyanjui. Kinyanjui earned first team all-conference honors after capturing the Conference USA individual title two weeks ago in Tampa, Florida. Ami Butler, who also earned first team all-conference accolades after finishing second to Kinyanjui at the conference meet, is expected to challenge for a top 10 finish this week as well. Katrina Zielinski and Calandra Stewart, a pair of third team all-league picks, look for all-region honors, which go to the top 25 finishers at the meet.
"This meet, along with the conference championship, is what we've been pointing towards all year long," said TCU coach Derek Koonts. "You go into a season with an idea that things could go a certain way. I thought we could be in the position we are. We have an opportunity on Saturday that if we perform well, we will have a really good chance of advancing to the nationals, which is something that's never been done at TCU," noted Koonts. "I think our success hinges on if Ami Butler's knee can hold up for 6,000 meters and whether either Heather Isbell or McKale Davis steps up in the number five spot.
"Baylor has to be the favorite going into the meet," continued Koonts, "but we should be right in that next group with Arkansas, Texas and Texas A&M, teams that are capable of finishing anywhere from second through fifth."
On the men's side, TCU will be led by second team all-Conference USA performer Jackson Langat. Others competing on Saturday wearing the Frog purple over the 10K course include Chris Benassi, David Harris, Steven Lenney, Brad Maciulewicz, Alex Morris and Raita Yamanouchi. The Frog men placed ninth among 12 teams at the C-USA Championships two weeks ago.
"Hopefully we can go out and prove we're better than we showed at the conference meet," said Koonts. "If we finish in the top 10 this weekend, that would be a good performance for this group. Jackson has a shot to be all-region," added Koonts.
The TCU women finished ninth at this meet a year ago, while the men's team, which was decimated by injuries, only had three runners available and did not compete for the team title. Neither squad has ever advanced to the NCAA Championships.
