Cross Country ready to run at Cowboy Jamboree
10/3/2008 12:00:00 AM | General
Oct. 3, 2008
FORT WORTH, Texas - The TCU cross country program will resume action this Saturday at the 72nd annual Cowboy Jamboree in Stillwater, Okla.
Start time for the women's race is set for 9:10 a.m., while the men's race will round out competition at 9:45 a.m. at the OSU Cross Country Course.
The Jamboree is the oldest consecutively run cross country race in the nation. The field, which will be comprised of 102 teams, includes No. 2 Oklahoma State and No. 16 Northern Arizona on the men's side. Nationally ranked women's teams include No. 21 Texas Tech and No. 24 Northern Arizona.
"We are very excited to actually run against some other jerseys this weekend. This kids are focused and ready to go," said distance coach Shawn Winget. "Overall, we have had a great month of work and our kids are anxious to get after it and see what happens in Stillwater."
Scouting TCU
During the early portion of the 2008 season, sophomore Tanja Ivandic has led the TCU women, finishing ahead of the pack in both meets this fall. Ashley Millerick and freshman Kelly Dawson have followed by either crossing the finish line in second or third overall, respectively.
On the men's side, Festus Kigen and Jacob Womeldorf have led the TCU attack, while Jeff Pels and Louis Tijerina have followed in second and third-place, respectively, in the first two meets this season.
Last Time Out
Sophomore Tanja Ivandic led a group of five Frogs that finished in the top six as the TCU women's cross country team took home top team honors at the North Texas Invitational.
The squad totaled only 19 points while coasting to victory in the women's race, while TCU scored 75 points for a fourth-place team finish in the men's competition.
Ivandic dominated the women's 5K race, posting a time of 11:34.00 to earn the first victory of her collegiate career. She finished more than 15 seconds in front of runner-up finisher Caroline Erlingson of UTA.
TCU was able to sweep the next four positions to compile its winning team score. Leading the group was freshman Kelly Dawson, who placed third in 11:50.86, followed by senior Ashley Millerick (11:55.42) and junior Lisa Baity (11:55.76) in fourth and fifth places, respectively. Junior Dani Selner (11:56.22) rounded out the team's scoring in sixth place.
Sophomore Jacob Womeldorf was the top finisher among the TCU contingent in the men's 8K. He placed eighth in 22:02.22, just ahead of ninth-place sophomore teammate Jeff Pels (22:04.63).
Follow The Horned Frogs
Fans not able to attend this week's meet in Stillwater can follow the meet by logging onto www.gofrogs.com. Results will be posted following the men and women's races.
Repeating As Champions
For the second-consecutive season, the TCU women captured first-place honors at the North Texas Invite. Tanja Ivandic once again helped lead the Horned Frogs to victory as she won her first collegiate event. In 2007, Ivandic finished second out of 39 runners at UNT.
Kigen Back In Action
Junior Festus Kigen will look to better his previous performances in Stillwater this weekend. The 2007 NCAA qualifier paced both the men and women with a 10th-place finish in the men's 8K last fall. Both the men and women will be running an 8K and 6K, respectively, for the first time in 2008.
Mountain West Conference Success Early
Entering this weekend, TCU has claimed the top seven times in the Mountain West for the men's 6K. Junior Festus Kigen leads all runners with a time of 18:40:93.
On the women's side, sophomore Tanja Ivandic leads the conference in the women's 4K with a season-opening time of 14:43.76. Her mark is the fastest time recorded by a Horned Frog since 2006 in the 4K. Right behind the Fort Worth native is senior Ashley Millerick at No. 6 with a time of 15:09.45.
Last Year In Stillwater
The TCU women's and men's cross country teams finished 13th and 15th, respectively, in a competitive field at the Cowboy Jamboree held at the Oklahoma State Cross Country Course on Saturday.
Sophomore Festus Kigen led TCU with a 10th-place finish in the men's 8K. The sophomore ran the course in 24:34, while senior Matt Manly had a solid outing as he crossed the finish line in 26:06 to place 40th overall out of 108 competitors.
Leading the pack for the Horned Frog women, who finished with 278 total points, was freshman Tanja Ivandic, who finished 31st in the women's 5K race with a time of 19:23. Dani Selner, a sophomore from Houston, followed by placing 36th overall with a time of 19:27.
Familiar Faces Leading The Way Under Winget
The Purple and White were led on the women's side by a familiar name during the opening weekend with Tanja Ivandic paving the way for the sixth-consecutive meet. The sophomore has now led TCU in every meet dating back to Sept. 15, 2007.
On the men's side, Festus Kigen, a Kenya native, had carried the Horned Frog men for an impressive nine-consecutive meets, including the NCAA Championships last fall, but had his streak put to a halt in Denton as he did not compete for the Purple and White.
Up Next
TCU will have a week off before traveling to Fayetteville, Ark., for the Chile Pepper Festival on Oct. 18.
Players Mentioned
