University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Head to Pre-NCAAs, Jim Drews Inv.
10/14/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Pre-NCAA MeetSaturday, Oct. 16 — Terre Haute, Ind.11:50 a.m.Live Video Stream - FloTrack.org
Jim Drews Invitational
Saturday, Oct. 16 — West Salem, Wis.10:30 a.m.
Golden Gopher Watch List — Oct. 14, 2010
• Minnesota Competes in Pre-NCAA Meet - The Minnesota men’s and women’s cross country teams travel to Terre Haute, Ind., and the course that will host the NCAA Championships on Saturday, Oct. 16, to compete in the Pre-NCAA Meet. The Gophers will compete in the White Race for both the women and men. The Gopher women’s team races at 10:35 a.m. (CT), while the men race at 11:50 a.m. (CT).
• Watch the Races Live - FloTrack.org will provide live coverage of the Pre-NCAA Meet including a video stream of each race and pre- and post-race interviews.
• Gophers Among Large Nationally Ranked Field at Pre-NCAA Meet - The Minnesota men’s and women’s teams are ranked No. 25 and No. 26, respectively, in this week’s USTFCCCA national poll. In both the Pre-NCAA men’s and women’s fields, a total of 18 of the 30 nationally ranked teams are set to compete.
• Minnesota Competes in Second Meet as Well - Both the Gopher men and women will compete squads at meets hosted by UW-LaCrosse on Saturday, the Jim Drews (men) and Tori Neubauer (women) Invitationals.
• Gopher All-American Mead to Miss Season - Gopher senior All-American Hassan Mead will miss the 2010 season due to injury. A three-time All-American, Mead won Big Ten titles in 2008 and 2009.
Minnesota Competes in Two Meets This Weekend
The No. 25 Minnesota men’s cross country team will compete in the Pre-NCAA Meet in Terre Haute, Ind., on Saturday, Oct. 16. 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 11:50 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.
Track and Field Videos on Flotrack
Not Your Average Run in the Park
The Pre-NCAA field is loaded with talent as 18 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 36-team White Race along with nine other nationally ranked teams, including No. 4 Colorado and No. 8 Portland. The Blue Race has nine ranked teams in its field as well, led by No. 1 Stanford and No. 5 Northern Arizona. Six top-10 teams have chosen not to compete in the Pre-NCAA meet.
Meaningful Meet with Post-Season Implications
The Pre-NCAA Meet is an important competition for teams to earn valuable points to support an NCAA Championships at-large berth. The top two teams at the NCAA Regional Championships will receive an automatic berth. The remainder of the 31-team NCAA field is filled with at-large selections.
Teams receive points by defeating team ranked above them in the national rankings. Thus, for Minnesota, the Gophers look to chase down teams nationally ranked teams in the White Race: Alabama, BYU, Colorado, Georgetown, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Portland and Tulsa. Oklahoma (2) and Tulsa (3) are ranked ahead of Minnesota in the Midwest Region.
Big Ten Competitors
Six of the Big Ten teams will be competing in the Pre-NCAA Meet this weekend. The Gophers are the only Conference team in the White Race. Illinois, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and Purdue will compete in he Blue Race.
Mead Out for the Season
Minnesota senior Hassan Mead will miss the 2010 cross country season after suffering a collapsed lung during an easy training run in early September. Mead has struggled with injuries over the last year. Mead redshirted the 2010 indoor and outdoor track seasons with an Achilles tendon injury. Mead has one season of cross country and two seasons of track eligibility.
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.
Ben Blankenship (Sr., Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater/Mississippi State)
2008 - 84th, 24:47.8
2009 - 24th, 24:11.2
Pieter Gagnon (So., Minneapolis, Minn./Washburn)
2009 - 90th, 25:00.8
Kevin Lachowitzer (So., Perham, Minn./Perham)
Kevin Larsen (RFr., Glen Ellyn, Ill./Marmion)
Sean Olson (Jr., Menomonie, Wis./Menomonie)
2008 - 72nd, 24:41.2
2009 - 173rd, 25:59.6
Erik Truedson (RFr., Bemidji, Minn./Bemidji)
Mike Torchia (Sr., Rochester, Minn./Lourdes)
2008 - 67th, 24:38.3
Gophers Fifth in Griak Invitational
Minnesota placed fifth in a talented field at the Griak Invitational on Sept. 25. The Gophers looked to a pair of seniors in Ben Blankenship and Mike Torchia to lead the way. Blankenship finished 10th in a time of 24:31.1, while Torchia was 14th in 24:42.4. Sophomore Pieter Gagnon was the third Gopher in the top 20, placing 15th in a time of 24:42.9.
Minnesota Coaching Staff
Golden Gopher head coach Steve Plasencia is in his 15th season leading the Minnesota program. Plasencia has guided the Gophers to NCAA Championships berths in 12 of his 14 years with his alma mater with the 2007 eighth-place NCAA finish the Gophers’ best since 1969. Volunteer assistant coach Chris Rombough is in his first year on the Gopher coaching staff after collecting three All-America honors in his Minnesota cross country career.
Players Mentioned
