Oct. 26, 2006
Columbia, Mo. - The University of Missouri men's and women's cross country teams will compete in the Big 12 Championships Friday in Lawrence, Kan. The University of Kansas hosts the Championships at historic Rim Rock Farm.
Missouri Head Coach Jared Wilmes is excited about the 11th annual conference meet.
"It is a fun meet. It is going to be fun to line up against these teams, especially at Rim Rock."
Both the men's and women's races feature competitive fields. On the women's side, Colorado, Texas Tech and Baylor are ranked in the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) top-30. On the men's side, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma State and Texas are ranked in the top-30 and Iowa State is receiving votes.
The women's 6k race will begin at 10 a.m. (CT), followed by the men's 8k at 11 a.m. The top men's and women's teams will be crowned league champion and earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships. The top 15 individuals in each race will be named all-conference.
Last year, the Tiger women finished fourth in the Big 12 race in Waco, Texas. Colorado won the race. Mizzou's top finisher, then-senior Valerie Lauver, finished 12th overall. Tiger senior Amanda Bales was injured for most of last season and missed the Big 12 Championships. In the 2004 race, she finished first for Missouri and sixth overall.
On the men's side, Mizzou finished fifth. Colorado won the men's race as well. Then-senior Matt Noonan finished first for the Tigers and 21st overall. Garett Jeffries finished second for the Tigers and 37th overall. Senior Tim Ross was injured for most of last season and missed the Big 12 Championships, but in 2004 he finished sixth overall.
On Oct. 14, the Tiger men competed in the Pre-Nationals Meet in Terre Haute, Ind. Missouri ran in the White Division Race, which included 11 teams ranked in the USTFCCCA top-30. No. 5 Iona won the race, and Missouri finished 17th. Individually, Ross finished 50th and Jeffries finished 57th with a personal-best 8k time of 24:30.9. Freshman Dan Hedgecock was Mizzou's third finisher for the second race in a row.
Five Mizzou runners finished the Pre-Nationals with personal-best 8k times. In addition to Jeffries and Hedgecock, Cornell, Bell and Barrows each set new career best times.
On Oct. 14, the women competed in the Blue Division Race at the Pre-Nationals Meet (6k) in Terre Haute, Ind. The Blue Race featured 11 teams ranked in the USTFCCCA top-30. The Tigers finished 23rd, while No. 1 Stanford won the race. Bales led the Tigers again with a 25th place finish. She finished the race in 20:47.2, her best 6k time since the 2003 NCAA Championships, when she finished 23rd with a time of 20:31. Greer finished second for the Tigers and 78th overall. Ries finished third and 104th overall. Greer and Reis both had career-best 6k times.
After the Big 12 Championships, the Tigers will compete in the Midwest Regional Championships in Falcon Heights, Minn. on Nov. 11.