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November 14, 2011
Lady Tiger cross country team places ninth at national meet
Earning another top-10 national finish, the Cowley College women’s cross country team placed ninth at the NJCAA Division I National Championship meet held Saturday in Hobbs, New Mexico. This marks the sixth straight year the Lady Tigers have placed among the top-10 teams nationally.
“We would have liked to have finished a little higher, but our program goals are to finish in the top-10 at nationals, so we will be happy with the finish,” Cowley head coach Mark Phillips said.
After capturing the national championship in 2010, Cowley watched Iowa Central Community College claim this year’s crown. Iowa Central finished 13 points better than runner-up Central Arizona and 21 points in front of third place El Paso Community College. Cowley was the top finisher among Region VI schools.
Leading the way for the Lady Tigers were sophomores Jessalyn Lanoy (20:48.45) and Maria Schmidt (20:48.87), who placed 42nd and 43rd, respectively, out of 268 athletes in the 5K race.
“Those two sophomores up front have been steady all year,” Phillips said.
South Plains’ Natoya Goule won the women’s race with a time of 18:45.16.
Freshmen Kelly Roberts (21:47.48) and Konnie Zuniga (21:53.12) were Cowley’s next closets finishers as they placed 102nd and 106th. Lady Tiger sophomore Trenda McClaughry was running well before cramping up and falling back to 129th with a time of 22:21.78.
Freshmen Julia Stafford (22:56.48) and Valerie Nielson (23:15.79) rounded out Lady Tiger runners at the meet and placed 169th and 180th, respectively.
“Hopefully, the freshmen gained a lot from the experience of competing at nationals,” Phillips said.
Along with the four freshmen that competed at the national meet, Katilyn Dispensa and Lindsay Johnson will also return for the squad.
“This freshmen group of ladies sets us up for a really good team again next year,” Phillips said.
Lanoy, Schmidt, and McClaughry all had solid careers at Cowley.
“The progression all three of them made from their freshman year is a testament of their work ethic,” Phillips said.
Unable to defend its national championship from a year ago, the Tiger men’s team was represented at the national meet by freshman Jack Taylor, who placed 171st out of 288 runners.
Taylor battled illness to finish with a time of 30:04.30 in the 8K race. He was running among the top-40 to 50 runners near the three-mile mark before running out of steam.
“I felt bad that Jack was not able to run like he had hoped,” Phillips said. “I think Jack will make a great transition as a sophomore and will be a rock we can build on.”
Also returning for the Tiger men’s team will be Cody Drake and Andrew Means.
Paradise Valley took home the team title on the men’s side.
Women’s Top-10 Team Scores: (1) Iowa Central, 84; (2) Central Arizona, 91; (3) El Paso, 105; (4) South Plains, 152; (5) Macomb, 153; (6) Lansing, 166; (7) Western Texas, 241; (8) Pima, 273; (9) Cowley, 330; (10) Jackson, 332.
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