University of Minnesota Athletics
Pre-NCAA Meet Next For Gopher Harriers
10/15/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Golden Gopher Cross Country This Week:
Pre-NCAA Meet
Saturday, Oct. 17 — Terre Haute, Ind.
Jim Drews Invitational
Saturday, Oct. 17 — West Salem, Wis.
Minnesota Competes in Two Meets This Weekend
The No. 30 Minnesota men’s cross country team will compete in the Pre-NCAA Meet in Terre Haute, Ind., on Saturday, Oct. 17. The meet, hosted by Indiana State, is contested on the LaVern Gibson Cross Country Course, the site of the NCAA Championships in November. Three 8-kilometer races will be contested. The Gophers will run in the second race of the day, the White Race, at 10:40 a.m.(CT). 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 20 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. Minnesota will compete in the 35-team White Race along with nine other nationally ranked teams, including No. 1 Stanford, No. 4 Colorado, No. 6 BYU and No. 8 Portland. The Blue Race has 10 ranked teams in its field, led by No. 2 Northern Arizona, No. 3 Alabama, No. 7 Oregon and No. 9 William & Mary. Only two top-10 ranked teams, No. 4 Oklahoma State and No. 10 Georgetown, are not competing at the Pre-NCAA meet.
Half of the Big Ten Will Be There
Five of the Big Ten teams will be competing in the Pre-NCAA Meet this weekend. The Gophers will see Illinois and Ohio State in the White Race, while Michigan State and Iowa will compete in he Blue Race.
Two Years, Two Records - Aiming for Three
The Pre-NCAA Meet and the Gibson course have produced Minnesota 8-kilometer records in each of the last two years. Hassan Mead finished third in the 2008 Blue Race in a time of 23:33.1, bettering Chris Rombough’s 15th-place time of 23:39.7 from 2007.
The Golden Gopher Lineup
These seven Golden Gophers are scheduled to compete in the Pre-NCAA White Race and any past finishes/times at the event.
Matt Barrett (Sr., Monroe, Wis./Monroe)
Ben Blankenship (Jr., Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater/Mississippi State)
2008 - 84th, 24:47.8
Travis Burkstrand (R-Fr., Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview)
Pieter Gagnon (R-Fr., Minneapolis, Minn./Washburn)
Paul Hilsen (So., Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville South)
Hassan Mead (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn./Minneapolis South)
2007 - 20th, 23:45.0
2008 - 3rd - 23:33.1
Sean Olson (So., Menomonie, Wis./Menomonie)
2008 - 72nd, 24:41.2
Mead Wins Griak Title, Gophers Fourth as a Team
Golden Gopher All-American Hassan Mead set Minnesota history on Saturday (Sept. 26), becoming the first Minnesota men’s cross country runner to capture medalist honors at the Roy Griak Invitational. Mead, running his first meet of the 2009 season, covered the 8-kilometer course in a time of 24 minutes, 37.5 seconds.
Despite placing three runners in the top six, Minnesota finished fourth in the team standings with 101 points. Ben Blankenship posted an impressive fourth-place finish running a time of 24:56.9, while Matt Barrett tallied a sixth-place showing in 25:01.0.
Mead pushed the pace of the race early on then ran comfortably from the front and extending his lead. The defending Big Ten champion, Mead won the Griak crown by over 12 seconds over runner-up Iowa State’s Guor Majak.
Players Mentioned
