TERRE HAUTE —
Saturday was a great day for Wisconsin-Stout senior Tim Nelson, who won the men’s 8-kilometer part of the NCAA Division III cross country championships at LaVern Gibson Championship Course.
But it almost took a bizarre twist at the end of the race.
Comfortably ahead of runner-up Allegheny junior Bobby Over with a few hundred yards to go, Nelson lacked energy and struggled to take each step before he finally reached the finish line. After crossing it, he needed help from meet officials to remain on his feet.
“I just had nothing left,” Nelson told the Tribune-Star after he regained his bearings. “I ran myself into the ground. With about a K [kilometer] to go, I really had spent everything I had. That last K, I was going off guts and adrenaline.”
He admitted that he wondered if he would be able to finish.
“I was actually getting pretty nervous with about 500 [meters] to go,” he said. “I was getting really nervous because I just had nothing.”
On a more positive note, Nelson said he started building a good-sized lead at the 3K mark.
“I was up toward the front from the get-go,” explained Nelson, who placed fourth in the Division III nationals last year. “I ran the first 2K kinda with everyone. Then going up the hill, I put a move on to try to not slow down. That was the gameplan. It was nice that I was able to get some separation [from the other lead runners] and come away with a win that I worked so hard for.”
Looking at the big picture, Nelson said “it means everything” to win his first national championship in his final collegiate cross country race. His time was 24 minutes, 26.8 seconds, still eight seconds ahead of Over.
In the women’s 6K, Wisconsin-Oshkosh senior Christy Cazzola pulled off a come-from-behind victory after trailing Amherst senior Keri Lambert, who ended up third, for most of the race. Ohio Northern senior Alison Steinbrunner rallied to finish second, about 15 1/2 seconds behind Cazzola.
“It feels amazing and is the experience of a lifetime,” proclaimed Cazzola, who finished in 20:53.3. “I think being a cross country national champ is different than being a track champion, so it’s definitely a dream come true.”
Team champions were North Central College (167 points) for the men and Johns Hopkins (158 points) for the women.
“The strategy was one word and one word alone, and that was the ‘team’ dynamic,” North Central men’s coach Allen Carius mentioned. “I know it sounds corny, but our strategy was to tap into the team. The team was going to carry us through the season and through this race.”
Junior John Crain was North Central’s top finisher as he placed sixth in 24:43.5.
This national title was the 15th for North Central in the 30-year history of the Division III cross country championships.
For Johns Hopkins in the women’s race, this was its first national championship in cross country ever.
“Much of our success involved setting the right mood and having our team enjoy the national championship atmosphere,” Johns Hopkins women’s coach Bobby Van Allen said. “As far as team tactics, we had our four, five and six really pack up and they did it perfectly. They all tied and that pretty much sealed it for us.”
Freshman Hannah Oneda was Johns Hopkins’ top finisher in 10th place (21:26.3).
The “national championship atmosphere” mentioned by Van Allen was noticeable from the late morning — when the temperature was 46 degrees for the start of the men’s race — through the early afternoon.
Even though the NCAA Division I cross country nationals took a one-year break from Terre Haute after it was conducted here from 2004 through 2011, the DIII version still provided the usual fun college antics — shirtless male student-fans with words of encouragement painted on their chests and stomachs, colorful school banners and team mascots.
Overall, there were 64 teams (32 men’s and 32 women’s) and a total of 557 runners who finished.
One of them was Manchester College junior Clayton Harlan, a 2010 Terre Haute South High School graduate who placed 244th in the men’s race.
“For my own standards, I kinda expected more,” he acknowledged. “I expected to be patient for the first couple miles, then pick off people, because that’s the way I race. … But I didn’t have much ‘go’ today. I just couldn’t get around people and I couldn’t get enough adrenaline going, even though the fans were great. It was tough for me because it’s all mental. Physically, I was there. But, mentally, I was off.”
Harlan said he had raced at the Gibson course “too many times to count” during his high school career, so it was nice to return.
“I know the course inside and out,” he emphasized. “The course was great today and the grass was mowed. Rose-Hulman did an excellent job hosting the national championships this year.”
NCAA Division III
cross country championships
Saturday
At LaVern Gibson Championship Course
MEN
(8 kilometers, 280 runners finished)
Team scores — North Central 167, Calvin and Haverford 188, Wisconsin-La Crosse 190, Washington U. 226, Bates 260, Tufts 265, Middlebury 286, Wheaton 315, Wisconsin-Eau Claire 323.
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 329, Williams 356, Central College 356, St. Olaf 371, Allegheny 374, Bowdoin 390, Carnegie Mellon 419, Geneseo State 443, Dickinson 455, Johns Hopkins 475.
Rochester 517, NYU 540, Cortland State 546, Luther 584, Pomona-Pitzer 590, Lynchburg 617, St. Lawrence 698, Wabash 711, Manchester 732, Case Western 736, La Verne 768, Trinity (Texas) 831.
Top 30 — Tim Nelson (Wisconsin-Stout) 24:26.8, Bobby Over (Allegheny) 24:34.8, Grant Wintheiser (SO) 24:35.7, Kevin Sparks (Wash. U.) 24:37.0, Tully Hannan (Bates) 24:39.9, John Crain (NC) 24:43.5, Tim Hartung (York) 24:43.6, Noah Droddy (DePauw) 24:44.6, Coby Horowitz (Bowdoin) 24:45.2, Alex Brimstein (GS) 24:46.7.
Billy Whitmore (U of Chicago) 24:47.6, Chris Stadler (Haverford) 24:47.7, Michael LeDuc (Conn College) 24:48.0, Dan Kerley (NC) 24:48.5, Jeremy Kieser (W-EC) 24:49.4, Bryan Marsh (Wesleyan) 24:50.4, Samuel Seekins (Bowdoin) 24:51.2, Chris Lee (Williams) 24:53.4, Wylie Mangelsdorf (Principia) 24:53.8, Anthony Salvucci (Springfield) 24:55.0.
Jack Davies (Mid) 24:57.3, Jack Waterman (Wheaton) 24:57.5, Nick Marcantonio (CS) 24:58.7, Josh Kaul (W-LC) 24:58.8, Cody Stanton (Lynchburg) 25:00.8, Nick Kramer (Calvin) 25:01.9, Aaron Easker (W-EC) 25:01.9, Eli Horton (Central College) 25:02.0, Peter Kissin (Haverford) 25:02.0, Josh Dedering (W-LC) 25:02.2.
WOMEN
(6 kilometers, 277 runners finished)
Team scores — Johns Hopkins 158, Wartburg 221, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 233, Williams 266, Wisconsin-Eau Claire 272, MIT 291, St. Lawrence 297, St. Olaf 309, Oberlin 316, Hope 328.
Middlebury 329, Trinity (Texas) 333, Haverford 338, Luther 353, U. of Chicago 381, Amherst 396, Carleton 407, Calvin 413, Bates 424, Lewis & Clark 452.
Gustavius Adolphus 465, NYU 508, Dickinson 537, Illinois Wesleyan 554, Wisconsin-La Crosse 563, Geneseo State 564, Rowan 577, Kenyon 584, Wisconsin-Oshkosh 595, Ithaca 683, Emory 767, Willamette 784.
Top 30 — Christy Cazzola (W-O) 20:53.3, Alison Steinbrunner (Ohio Northern) 21:08.9, Keri Lambert (Amh) 21:13.0, Addie Tousley (Mid) 21:14.7, Emma Lee (SO) 21:19.6, Ashlyn Maurer (W-EC) 21:21.8, Alana Enabnit (Wart) 21:23.2, Taylor Berg (St. Thomas) 21:23.8, Jorden Johnson (SO) 21:25.4, Hannah Oneda (JH) 21:26.3.
Melissa Skiba (Cal Lutheran) 21:26.9, Kristen Galligan (Wash & Jefferson) 21:27.4, Sheena Crawley (Franklin & Marsh) 21:30.2, Sammi Bruett (Wart) 21:30.2, Chelsea Johnson (St. Scholastica) 21:30.3, Kaleigh Kenny (Williams) 21:31.5, Lenore Moreno (La Verne) 21:32.5, Linda Keller (Minnesota-Morris) 21:32.6, Sophia Stone (Mary Baldwin) 21:33.0, Tricia Serres (Luther) 21:33.3.
Lucy Cheadle (Washington U.) 21:34.1, Erin Statz (St. Thomas) 21:36.6, Fiona Hendry (Haverford) 21:44.2, Bridget Blum (C-M-S) 21:48.3, Holly Clarke (JH) 21:48.9, Olivia Mills (Bridgewater) 21:49.3, Lauren Norton (Rochester) 21:50.3, Adrienne Strait (Williams) 21:52.3, Jenna Willett (Kenyon) 21:53.0, Madison Sawyer (W-EC) 21:54.3.
College
Related Photos
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Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Big contingent: Dozens of cross country fans from Case Western Reserve University made the trip to Terre Haute on Saturday to cheer their team.
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Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Winner: Christy Cazzola of Wisconsin-Oshkosh nears the finish line to win the women's race of the DIII national cross country championships in Terre Haute.
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Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Winners: John's Hopkins runners Annie Monagle, Lara Shegoski and Hannah Oneda enjoy their finish in the DIII women's NCAA championship cross country race Saturday in Terre Haute.
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Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis All alone: Tim Nelson of Wisconsin-Stout has a sizable lead near the halfway point of the men's DIII national championship cross country race in Terre Haute on Saturday.
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Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Stout finish: Wisconsin-Stout runner Tim Nelson won the Men's DIII NCAA championship cross country race in Terre Haute on Saturday.
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Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Hard corner: The women start their first turn of the 6K race at the Lavern Gibson championship cross country course Saturday afternoon in Terre Haute. The DIII NCAA championship was at stake. Runners include Kenyon�s Jenna Willett(654) and St. Olaf�s Jorden Johnson(756).
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Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Fans: Spectators run from point to point to cheer their runners at the DIII NCAA cross country championships Saturday morning at the Lavern Gibson Cross Country course.
Discussion
Wisconsin-Stout senior hangs on for Division III title at LaVern Gibson
- College
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ISU's athletic treasure trove
Think of every championship that Indiana State has won in each of its sports, past and present. Think of every tournament — postseason or regular season — which the Sycamores have claimed as their own.
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Ort sets ISU RBI record in 16-7 win
Robby Ort celebrated his Indiana State baseball Senior Day on Saturday by becoming the Sycamores’ all-time leader in RBIs as ISU ended its regular season with a 16-7 win over Bradley at Bob Warn Field.
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Bradley ends 16-game MVC losing streak against ISU
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ISU couldn’t do it. -
Behind 16 hits and Manaea's pitching, ISU beats Bradley
Indiana State’s baseball team rode a wild ride of emotion on Thursday.
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Metro roundup: Woods softball takes seventh in national tournament
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ISU baseball team builds on success with 14-2 rout
Indiana State’s baseball victory over Alcorn State on Friday would take on more meaning Saturday if the Sycamores could build momentum and pick up on the good work they did in Friday’s ninth-inning rally.
Mission accomplished.
The Sycamores were aggressive from the opening inning at the plate and starting pitcher Devin Moore gave them eight valuable and effective innings on the mound as ISU defeated Alcorn State 14-2 at Bob Warn Field.
“It was a really good experience for everybody. It felt great to finally come out here and put some things together. It’s also really nice when your offense puts a lot of runs on the board,” Moore said.
Moore’s eight innings of work were as valuable as gold to an ISU team that is short on quality arms due to injury and ineffectiveness. He didn’t allow a hit until the fourth inning and one of the two runs he conceded was unearned. -
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Indiana State’s Felisha Johnson and Maurice Lyke were both crowned Missouri Valley Conference champions on Saturday during the MVC Track and Field Championships at Drake University.
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ISU earns badly-needed win
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ISU’s Mascari and Hope win MVC track & field titles
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ISU pole vault tradition continues with help from its author
Pole vault is track and field for the adrenaline junkie, Indiana State senior Nicole Hope proclaimed during a recent practice at Marks Field.
To catapult oneself about 14 feet into the air with a large $500 fiberglass pole on a daily basis is a risky endeavor.
“We have to be fearless. You can’t be afraid at all,” said Hope, who has also catapulted herself into the NCAA’s elite in the event, ranking 15th in the NCAA with her leap of 13-feet, 9 1/4. -
Sycamores searching for answers after seventh loss in eight games
These are the bad times for the Indiana State baseball team.
The will is there for the Sycamores to pull out of their worst slump of the season, but the results are not. The suffering continued on Wednesday at Bob Warn Field as Eastern Illinois defeated ISU 5-3. -
METRO ROUNDUP: ISU men's track picked first in MVC Championships, women second
The Indiana State men’s track team has won the last two Missouri Valley Conference outdoor championships, but the women have not stood on the top podium since 1999.
That may change this year, but the Sycamores will face some stiff competition in their quest for the championships. -
North grad Welker helps Whitson earn first NCAA bid as coach
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METRO ROUNDUP: Rose-Hulman wins HCAC all-sports trophy
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Rose tallied 66.5 points for its finishes in 11 men’s sports, just ahead of Franklin with 66. Hanover was third with 53 points. -
METRO ROUNDUP: Rose-Hulman tennis falls in HCAC semifinal
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Manaea fights off bad hip, wet weather to toss four innings
Mother Nature has been the bane of the Indiana State baseball team’s existence all season. Eight games wiped due to weather are a testament to that. So it was no surprise, though no less disappointing, when she didn’t deal Indiana State pitcher Sean Manaea the greatest hand on Saturday as he tries to recover from a hip injury.
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ISU track enjoys big night at IU's Billy Hayes Invitational
The Indiana State Sycamores either won or finished as the top collegian in 12 events, led by the record-breaking performance of senior Brandon Pounds at the 2013 Billy Hayes Invitational Friday at Indiana University.
Pounds broke his own school record to win the men’s hammer throw. -
Lansing looking for more home games for next fall
Indiana State’s men’s basketball team is looking for a few good games.
Home games that is.
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Secret weapon: Kelsey Rosselli finishing Woods career with a bang
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In fact, her efforts almost seem like a government secret.
Rosselli’s name might sound familiar to longtime Terre Haute softball followers because she was a standout for North High School, from where she graduated in 2009.
Since then, she’s helped The Woods finish runner-up in three straight U.S. Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national tournaments in 2010, 2011 and 2012. -
ISU baseball gets back into rhythm with victory
Baseball is a rhythm game. With contests every day or five times a week in the case of many college programs, you have the chance to build on success or wallow in a slump.
Mother Nature took that rhythm away from Indiana State’s team last week. After a 7-1 loss to Indiana on April 24, ISU was supposed to play a three-game series at Tennessee-Martin, but it was wiped out by rain.
So the rhythm was disturbed, but perhaps that wasn’t a bad thing.
ISU was in a five-game losing streak before its unintended vacation and the Sycamores made a move in the right direction Wednesday with a 7-0 win over DePauw at Bob Warn Field.
“It was a disappointing weekend. We went all the way down to Tennessee and didn’t get to play. We sat around in the hotel room. We came here and it was still raining. It was nice to get out and see some live pitching,” ISU center fielder Landon Curry said. -
Metro roundup: ISU hands out spring awards
The Indiana State University athletic community, along with family, friends and fans, paused Tuesday night to honor the spring sports teams at the Terre Haute Savings Bank Spring Sports Banquet.
Most of the ISU teams are still in competition with the baseball team having 13 games left of its regular-season schedule before beginning the Missouri Valley Conference tournament May 21, the softball team with just three games left of the docket this coming weekend against Southern Illinois and the track and field program with just one more meet before beginning its postseason events.
The ISU women’s golf team is the team that has ended at this time, with the group recording a sixth-place finish at the MVC championships one week ago. -
METRO ROUNDUP: Rose baseball wins another thriller
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ISU relay teams enjoy strong day at Drake Relays
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Indiana State baseball series canceled
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Metro roundup; Five Wabash Valley players on Terre Haute Rex team
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Indiana State loses 2 in MVC softball
Indiana State aspired to upset Illinois State to get at least a doubleheader split in Missouri Valley Conference softball Thursday at Price Field as the Sycamores opened an eight-game season-ending homestand.
Paige Schreiner hit a two-run blast over the left-field fence in the fifth inning and junior Shelby Wilson delivered a sizzling RBI triple down the right-field line in the sixth as ISU ended the day playing well against the league’s highest-scoring offense.
The result was still a 5-3 loss to the Redbirds (26-18, 11-6 Missouri Valley Conference) as freshman Halle Humphrey gave up four runs in the first two innings. Humphrey, called upon to pitch the opener as well — she’s the only full-time pitcher remaining on the team — gave up six runs and eight hits as the Sycamores dropped a 6-1 game to start the day. -
Sycamores fall: Slumping ISU drops 8-1 decision to No. 19-ranked IU
The margin in baseball between success and failure is so tight.
Indiana State learned that lesson the hard way against No. 19-ranked Indiana on Wednesday.
For most of the contest, ISU matched IU hit-for-hit, but couldn’t match the Hoosiers run-for-run as IU took maximum advantage of its baserunners to post an 8-1 victory at IU’s new Bart Kaufman Field.
IU — winners of four in a row and owners of a 19-game win streak earlier this season — proved its quality by putting the foot on the gas in the last three innings of the contest. The Hoosiers scored five of their runs in that period.
But up until that point, the game was in either team’s hands, but the Hoosiers took it with better situational hitting. IU’s first baserunners in three separate innings came around to score; two of them did so with two outs on the board. - More College Headlines
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