TERRE HAUTE — Texas Tech sophomore Sally Kipyego became the first Kenyan woman to capture an NCAA cross country individual championship Monday, and the Stanford Cardinal women’s team celebrated a repeat national championship behind the strength of five runners among the top 62.
While men from Kenya have a long, rich history of distance running success with more than 40 Olympic medals and several NCAA titles, only recently have Kenyan women been finding their way to colleges in the United States and pursuing professional running careers.
Kipyego took any potential drama out of the individual title race from the beginning in the fourth NCAAs contested at LaVern Gibson Championship Course at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center.
The transfer from South Plains Junior College led from the start and took the first right turn and headed uphill and left the rest of the field behind.
“Being in front was very important to me,” said Kipyego, who didn’t lose a race all season and as recently as nine days ago defeated national runner-up Jenny Barringer by 45 seconds for the second time.
“It was tough coming in knowing that,” Barringer said.
Kipyego only started running five years ago so her future could be a bright one on the world running scene. Having began running competitively in 2000, Kipyego said she is very proud that she will earn her degree in nursing.
“I know you can’t run forever,” said Kipyego, adding that she hopes she can set an example for many other Kenyan women to come study and run in the United States.
When some F-16 jets roared overhead in between questions for Colorado coach Mark Wetmore, he bantered “must be Sally cooling down.”
Barringer’s previous meetings with Kipyego gave her a good idea what she was up against Monday. The Buffaloes’ sophomore finished just 16.8 seconds behind Kipyego’s time of 20:11.
“I feel so awesome right now,” said Barringer, adding that the mud made for a fun race. “The turns were tough today … It was really, really muddy… There was a lot of slipping and sliding, but it was a lot of fun. When you have mud splashing up on your face and going everywhere and you’ve given everything to get across the line, it really shows how hard you’re working. So even though it’s muddy and slippery, it was a lot of fun.”
The mud wasn’t so much fun for a few runners that lost her shoes. Some were returned, but Indiana State men’s coach John McNichols reported that he found a shoe when combing the course for trash hours after the races. “We’ve had muddy meets before but nothing like this,” McNichols said.
The loss of a shoe to No. 5-ranked Arkansas’ fifth runner Christine Kalmer may have cost the Razorbacks, who placed fifth.
Berringer and her No. 6 Buffalo teammates also had a tough task in trying to thwart a Stanford team led by junior returning All-American Arianna Lambie. Lambie placed fourth after trying in vein to catch Kipyego past the 5K mark, placing just behind Yale’s Lindsay Donaldson and just ahead of N.C. State’s Julia Lucas.
“I went out conservative, but I didn’t want to finish the race feeling like I had a whole lot left,” Barringer said. “I think I dug as deep today as I’ve ever dug in my life. I’m really, really proud of my finish.”
Colorado coach Mark Wetmore had two women’s national championships under his belt before collecting his third men’s title Monday.
“I’m as happy with the women finishing second as I am with the men winning the title,” Wetmore said. “They’re a very young team. There’s four freshmen and a woman who’s never even been to a conference championship before. So for them to manage the madness of this event and stay calm and execute their own race plan, it was maybe lucky but also a testimony to their faith in our preparation and each other.”
Coach Peter Tegen was business as usual with the Cardinal collecting a second straight national title. The Cardinal coach, who won back-to-back national titles for the Wisconsin women’s team in 1984-85 has repeated that feat for Stanford.
It was a matter of keeping his runners focused on the team’s goal, said Tegen, a native of Germany.
“We wanted to make sure not to do extracurricular, heroic, or special things during the race,” he said. “Make sure they just ran to their best ability.”
The conditions had Tegen somewhat concerned for his team, but a wet regional in Portland helped provide “a good christening for that environment.”
“When this kind of [muddy] environment happens, it evens the playing field quite drastically,” he said.
Big Ten champion and No. 10 Michigan finished third and Wisconsin fourth. The Big Ten had five teams ranked in the top 10 coming into the championships. Three finished that high, with Midwest Regional champion Illinois taking seventh.
Kipyego led No. 13 Texas Tech to a sixth-place team finish. Senior Irene Kimaiyo took ninth place overall. Providence in seventh, U.C. Santa Barbara in ninth and Duke rounded out the top 10 teams. Minnesota and No. 4 Michigan State were just outside the top 10 at 11th and 12th.
College
Kenya native from Texas Tech cruises to victory in women’s race
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Indiana State connects on all 12 of its 3-point shots vs. SIU and sets three NCAA records in process
When you’re a shooter and you’re in a slump, the boilerplate cure is to summon amnesia, forget about your struggles and keep on shooting.
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ISU's Webb wins heptathlon
Indiana State’s Robert Webb captured the heptathlon Saturday at the Grand Valley State Big Meet as he totaled the second most points in ISU history while dominating the event. Webb scored 5,140 points, which is second only to former Sycamore Anthony Bertoli’s 5,189 points in 2008.
Webb, a senior, established three more personal best efforts enroute to the overall victory as he ran 8.45 in the 60 meter hurdles and 2 minutes, 50.73 seconds in the 1,000 meters while also clearing 13-1 1/2 in the pole vault. Webb entered the second day of the event in the lead with 2,893 points after winning three of the four Friday events and setting personal bests in the long jump and shot put. -
Perfect game: ISU shoots NCAA record 12-for-12 from 3-point range in win over SIU
Indiana State set an NCAA record for 3-point percentage and consecutive 3-pointers made Saturday afternoon in Hulman Center, connecting on all 12 attempts during a 78-68 win over Southern Illinois.
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‘Frustrated’ Sycamores regroup to face Southern Illinois
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Thomas nets double-double as ISU women end losing streak
The halftime speech is one of the most time-worn clichés in sports, but once in a while, it’s meaningful. It certainly was for the Indiana State women’s basketball team on Friday against Bradley.
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Sycamore women looking to snap six-game losing streak
The Indiana State women’s basketball team is in dire need of a victory in Hulman Center this weekend.
Bradley visits Terre Haute tonight looking to sweep the season series from the Sycamores, who are in jeopardy of the program’s first seven-game losing streak since the 1995-96 season.
“I think it should [add to motivation]. There’s no doubt that group in the locker room in there is very disappointed,” Coach Teri Moren said. “As I keep saying, we’re in a rough patch right now, and there’s no group of kids that wants to get right back on track more than they do.” -
Leonard dominates in first half, but IU, Zeller earn the victory
The first half belonged to Illinois’ Meyers Leonard.
The win belonged to Indiana and Cody Zeller.
The 23rd-ranked Hoosiers (19-6, 7-6 Big Ten) took advantage of a glaring free-throw discrepancy to defeat the Illini 84-71 on Thursday. -
Rose women roll; Dickerson becomes all-time assists leader
Rose-Hulman senior Alisa Dickerson became the college’s career leader in assists as the Engineers cruised past Defiance 60-33 in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference women’s basketball Saturday afternoon in Hulbert Arena.
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MVC’s worst a tantalizing option for ISU
Even though the Indiana State men’s basketball team has played better of late, having won three of its last four games, there’s only one team with a worse record in the Missouri Valley Conference standings than the Sycamores.
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Sycamores can’t stop Stutz, Shockers
All or nothing. It was that kind of game for Wichita State center Garrett Stutz. Unfortunately for Indiana State’s men’s basketball team, the “all” came in the second half.
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McWhorter’s fortunes rise with ISU’s
More so than any other Sycamore, Steve McWhorter might embody the decline and the recent rise of the Indiana State men’s basketball team.
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Johnson dominates again for ISU track
Felisha Johnson continued to dominate women’s weight throw while two Indiana State hurdlers moved into today’s finals after solid performances in the preliminaries Friday at the Meyo Invitational at Notre Dame.
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Indiana State women lose at Illinois State
Playing short-handed again, Indiana State’s women suffered their sixth straight Missouri Valley Conference basketball loss Friday night, falling 78-67 to host Illinois State.
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Indiana, Purdue meet with both looking to regain momentum
Indiana University’s stint in the Top 25 may be coming to an end. Purdue is just looking for a winning streak.
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ISU women looking to end five-game losing streak at Illinois State
Within a few points in the final minutes, Indiana State had chances to win women’s basketball games at Missouri State and Wichita State last weekend.
But the Sycamores lost for the fourth and fifth straight games, also losing freshman Jessica Valley for the season at Wichita State. The promising backcourt player tore the ACL in her right knee and began strengthening exercises this week in order to make plans for surgery. -
ISU Senior Day game to be televised on ESPN
The Missouri Valley Conference announced Thursday that Indiana State’s regular season finale against No. 12-ranked Creighton on Feb. 25 in Hulman Center has been chosen as the MVC’s “wild card” game that will be telecast on either ESPN or ESPN2.
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Hoosiers load up on in-state players
With a 1-11 record in his first season as IU football coach, Kevin Wilson knew there were a lot of holes to fill in terms of personnel.
- Wabash Valley verbal commitments
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It’s on: Sycamores, Bulldogs to play at Hinkle on Feb. 18
How badly did Indiana State want to get Butler as its BracketBusters opponent?
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METRO ROUNDUP: Four from Rose receive weekly honors
Four Rose-Hulman athletes earned Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference weekly honors, the HCAC announced Monday.
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Hoosiers reclaim needed offensive momentum
Indiana hadn’t allowed an opponent to shoot better than 40 percent in three straight games heading into Sunday’s home game against Iowa.
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Sycamores will have to match Aces’ toughness
Indiana State men’s basketball coach Greg Lansing has an enduring respect for the toughness Evansville coach Marty Simmons coaxes out of his Purple Aces.
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WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ROUNDUP: Rose, The Woods post weekend victories
Rose-Hulman relied on a balanced scoring attack and a strong defensive effort to earn a 55-44 women’s basketball victory Saturday over Mount St. Joseph.
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ISU's Stacia Weatherford sets school record in 60-meter hurdles
Indiana State junior Stacia Weatherford set the school record in the women’s 60-meter hurdles, while sophomore Greggmar Swift dominated the action in the men’s 60 hurdles during competition Saturday at the Indiana Relays.
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Rose takes first in Engineer Track and Field Invitational
Rose-Hulman relied on nine event victories, 13 top-two finishes and three school records for a strong performance at the ninth annual Engineer Track and Field Invitational on Saturday.
The men’s squad captured first place honors in a meet that featured two of the nation's top 20 NCAA Division III squads and 12 institutions from seven states. The day’s competition also included 10 meet records. -
Mattox’s 31 not enough for ISU women
Indiana State pulled within 63-57 with a 6-0 run with 8 minutes, 50 seconds remaining Friday night at JQH Arena, but the Sycamores lost 84-70 to host Missouri State in a Missouri Valley Conference women's basketball game.
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Mattox, Sycamores staying positive on road trip to Missouri State, Wichita State
Indiana State seniors Brittany Schoen and Deja Mattox are within striking distance of passing 1,000 points in their women’s basketball careers, and they would join classmate Shannon Thomas in that club. Schoen needs just 16 points, while Mattox is 89 points away.
But Mattox has been on a roll of late, scoring a team-high 15.1 points through ISU’s 4-3 start to Missouri Valley Conference play. -
IU triumphs
When Indiana’s Will Sheehey left the floor after receiving his second technical foul, the Hoosier fans cheered.
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ISU women nipped at buzzer
Creighton sophomore Carli Tritz — blanketed by Indiana State senior Brittany Schoen — had just two points at halftime Friday in Hulman Center.
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ISU needs to find chip on its shoulder
When one looks back at the totality of Indiana State’s 2010-11 men’s basketball season, there’s a recurrent theme that tied together the high points in a 20-14 campaign. A recurrent theme that might give ISU a lifeline in what has been a disappointing 2012 season.
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