University of Minnesota Athletics
Golden Gophers Place Third at Big Ten Cross Country Championships
10/30/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Wisconsin, ranked second nationally, cruised to their seventh consecutive Big Ten title with 16 points, just one point off a perfect score and the lowest winning total in Conference history. The Badgers dominated the meet gathering eight of the top nine individual finishes. Senior Simon Bairu, the defending national champion, became the sixth runner in Big Ten history to capture medalist honors three straight seasons, winning easily with a time of 23 minutes, 31.73 seconds.
Ohio State scored 101 team points to edge Minnesota (102) by just one point for runner-up honors. The Gophers’ third-place showing matches their best under the direction of head coach Steve Plasencia, equaling the finish posted in 1999.
“We are a little disappointed by being edged out of second place but overall we ran well,” said Golden Gopher head coach Steve Plasencia. “Antonio (Vega) was impressive considering it’s just his second race of the season and David (VanOrsdel) really stepped up and had a nice race.”
Vega was the top Gopher finisher, placing 13th and collecting his first Big Ten postseason accolade. Vega was clocked in 24:44.38 in only his second race of the season after missing the first six weeks of the season with a back injury. Malmin, who also earned second-team All-Big Ten honors a year ago, placed 14th in a time of 24:46.58.
Freshman Chris Rombough posted a top-20 finish, placing 18th overall in a time of 25:01.59. David VanOrsdel was the fourth Gopher finisher, placing 28th in 25: 21.13, while Erik Grumstrup was 36th in 25:32.23.
The NCAA Midwest Region Championships in Iowa City, Iowa, is next on the Golden Gophers’ schedule in two weeks, on Nov. 12.
Players Mentioned
