University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Among 23 Ranked Teams at Pre-NCAA Meet
10/15/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Golden Gopher Cross Country This Week:
Pre-NCAA Meet
Saturday, Oct. 18 Terre Haute, Ind.
Jim Drews Invitational
Saturday, Oct. 18 West Salem, Wis.
Golden Gopher Watch List Oct. 18, 2008
Minnesota to Run at Pre-NCAA Meet - The Minnesota cross country teams, both the men and the women, will travel to Terre Haute, Ind., on Saturday, Oct. 18, to compete in the Pre-NCAA Meet. The event allows teams to race on the course that will host the NCAA Championships in November.
Golden Gopher Women Ranked No. 4 - The Minnesota women’s cross country team is currently ranked No. 4 in the nation. The Gophers will compete in the Pre-NCAA Blue Race, where they will meet No. 1-ranked Washington and 10 other nationally ranked teams. The Pre-NCAA White Race features 10 nationally ranked teams. A total of 10 of the 11 Big Ten schools will compete in the Pre-NCAA Meet.
Golden Gopher Men Run Blue Race - The Minnesota men, ranked No. 14 nationally, are entered in the Pre-NCAA Blue Race. A total of 12 nationally ranked teams are included in the field, topped by No. 2 Oklahoma State. Another 11 nationally ranked teams will be running in the White Race. The Big Ten has eight teams competing at the Pre-NCAA Meet on Saturday.
Doubling Up - The Gopher men’s and women’s teams will also have athletes competing at the Jim Drews (men) and Tori Neubauer (women) Invitationals, hosted by Wisconsin-LaCrosse in West Salem, Wis., on Saturday.
Minnesota Competes in Two Meets This Weekend
The No. 14 Minnesota men’s cross country team will send a complete team to compete in the Pre-NCAA Meet in Terre Haute, Ind., on Saturday, Oct. 18. Three 8-kilometer races will be contested. The Gophers will run in the Blue Race at 11:10 a.m. The Gophers will also have a number of individuals head to West Salem, Wis., on Saturday to compete in the Jim Drews Invitational, hosted by Wisconsin-LaCrosse.
Not Your Average Run in the Park
The Pre-NCAA field is loaded with talent as 23 nationally ranked teams will travel to the LaVern Gibson Cross Country Course for the chance to run on the course that will host the NCAA Championships in November. The field is split into two races, the Blue Race and the White Race. No. 14 Minnesota will compete in the Blue Race (11:10 a.m.) along with 11 other nationally ranked teams, including No. 2 Oklahoma State, No. 6 Alabama, No. 9 Michigan and No. 13 Florida State. The White Race has 11 ranked teams in its field, led by No. 3 Colorado, No. 7 Iona and No. 10 Stanford. No. 1 Oregon is not competing at the Pre-NCAA Meet this year, nor is No. 4 Portland, No. 5 Wisconsin and No. 8 Georgetown.
Most of the Big Ten Will Be There
Eight of the Big Ten teams will be competing in the Pre-NCAA Meet this weekend. The Gophers will see Iowa, Michigan and Ohio State in the Blue Race, while Illinois, Indiana, Michigan State and Purdue will compete in he White Race. The only Big Ten teams not entered in the meet are Penn State and Wisconsin.
Rombough, Mead Were Top 20 in 2007
Minnesota will once again take the lead of its All-Americans, Chris Rombough and Hassan Mead, as the Gophers expect to produce a solid team performance at the Pre-NCAA Meet. Rombough finished 15th and Mead 20th a year ago as the Gophers placed seventh in the White Race. Rombough’s time of 23:39.7 set a new Minnesota record over an 8-kilometer course.
The Golden Gopher Lineup
These seven Golden Gophers are scheduled to compete in the Pre-NCAA Blue Race and any past finishes/times at the event.
Ben Blankenship (So., Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater/Mississippi State)
Ben Kampf (Jr., Farmington, Minn./Farmington)
2007 - 174th, 25:13.9
Mike McFarland (So., Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead)
2007 - 116th, 24:38.7
Hassan Mead (So., Minneapolis, Minn./Minneapolis South)
2007 - 20th, 23:45.0
Sean Olson (R-Fr., Menomonie, Wis./Menomonie)
Chris Rombough (Sr., Fremont, Wis./New London)
2007 - 15th, 23:39.7
Mike Torchia (So., Rochester, Minn./Lourdes
Minnesota Coaching Staff
Golden Gopher head coach Steve Plasencia is in his 13th season leading the Minnesota program. Plasencia as guided the Gophers to NCAA Championships berths in 10 of his 12 years with his alma mater with last fall’s eighth-place NCAA finish the best since 1969. In July of 2008, Plasencia was named the Golden Gophers’ head men’s track & field coach. Volunteer assistant coach Jason Havey is in his first year with the Gophers.
Players Mentioned
