Oklahoma State Cowboys Repeat as Big 12 Champs

Cowboys Repeat as Big 12 Champs
The Oklahoma State Cowboy cross country team won its second-straight Big 12 title. The Cowgirls finished in 10th.

Oct. 31, 2009

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Oklahoma State Cowboy cross country team won its second-straight Big 12 Championship on Saturday at the A.L. Gustin Golf Course in Columbia, Mo.

The Cowboys claimed the top-four spots in the race with senior Ryan Vail winning his first individual crown. The Gresham, Ore., native finished the 8,000-meter course in 24:50.67 and made the most of his sixth year of eligibility that was granted to him in the summer.

“Well, it has taken me six years to get here,” Vail said. “This is my sixth year of cross country so it feels that much more special. After putting in this much effort, to finally have it pay off at this meet is a great finish for me.”

Senior John Kosgei finished in second place with a time of 24:52.26. Sophomore Colby Lowe claimed third-place honors, finishing three seconds behind Kosgei in 24:55.25. Sophomore German Fernandez, the 2008 Big 12 Champion, was fourth with a time of 24:57.83. Sophomore transfer Girma Mecheso clocked a time of 25:30.53 for 14th-place.

The top-15 finishers earned All-Big 12 honors. With the victory, Vail claimed his third-straight All-Big 12 honor. Kosgei, Lowe and Fernandez each earned All-Big 12 for the second-straight year.

OSU’s 24 team points were 32 points better than second-place Colorado. The Buffaloes won the first 12 Big 12 titles before the Cowboys broke the trend last year.

“It’s exciting, this is obviously one of the toughest conferences in the country and it has been for the last five or six years in terms of cross country,” Cowboy coach Dave Smith said. “Any conference that has teams like Iowa State, and especially Colorado, is a tough conference.”

On the women’s side, the Cowgirls finished in 10th place. Junior Mihaela Susa once again led the Cowgirls, finishing the 6,000-meter race in 21st-place with a time of 22:20.36. She narrowly missed out on her third-straight All-Big 12 honor.

Sophomore Victoria Fratczak finished in 43rd place and clocked a time of 23:00.47. Cowgirl senior Natalia Kovtun’s time of 23:07.56 was good for 48th-place. Senior Tone Hjalmarsen finished in 53rd-place in her season debut. Alyse Goldsmith notched a 63rd-place showing to round out the Cowgirl scorers.

Texas Tech claimed its second-straight Big 12 Championship, finishing 14 points ahead of second-place Colorado. The Lady Buffaloes had the top-two finishers at the event, with Jenny Barringer claiming the individual title.

Men

Team Standings
1 Oklahoma State 24
2 Colorado 56
3 Oklahoma 75
4 Iowa State 107
5 Texas 132
6 Texas A&M 171
7 Nebraska 199
8 Kansas 237
8 Missouri 237
10 Texas Tech 278
11 Baylor 282
12 Kansas State 354

Individual OSU Finishers
1 Ryan Vail 24:50.67
2 John Kosgei 24:52.26
3 Colby Lowe 24:55.25
4 German Fernandez 24:57.83
14 Girma Mecheso 25:30.53
28 John Stublaski 25:50.44
40 Ryan Little 26:02.76
45 Ryan Prentice 26:08.10
55 David Chirchir 26:25.84

Women

Team Standings
1 Texas Tech 38
2 Colorado 52
3 Iowa State 85
4 Nebraska 143
5 Kansas 160
6 Kansas State 170
7 Baylor 174
8 Texas 210
9 Missouri 212
10 Oklahoma State 224
11 Texas A&M 243
12 Oklahoma 340

Individual OSU Finishers
21 Mihaela Susa 22:20.12
43 Victoria Fratczak 23:00.47
48 Natalia Kovtun 23:07.56
53 Tone Hjalmarsen 23:16.81
63 Alyse Goldsmith 23:40.77
69 Jacqueline Campos 23:54.23
72 Melanie Funke 23:59.46
88 Teran Mixon 24:35.50
93 Laura Heaton 25:18.30

Courtesy Oklahoma State