Cross Country Squads Set for Regular Season Finale

Friday, October 13

STATE COLLEGE, PA

11:00 AM

Oklahoma State University

Penn State Open

The Cowboys en route to winning their eighth-straight Cowboy Jamboree title.

October 11, 2017 | Cowboy Cross Country & Track, Cowgirl Cross Country & Track

MEET NOTES

THE BASICS
In the final meet of the regular season, the Oklahoma State Cowboy cross country team looks to cement its spot in the national top-10 and as the region's best squad with another unbeaten regular season record.
The Cowgirls will look to bounce back after just their second Jamboree defeat in seven years and finish the regular season strong heading into the Big 12 Championship race after last year's runner up placing.

FOLLOW THE MEET
Fans can follow the action live on Twitter by following @run4okstate for updates. Final results will be published on www.gopsusports.com as well as www.okstate.com, along with a recap of OSU's day on the course.

MEET SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES CT)
The 2017 Penn State Open is scheduled to begin at 9:45 a.m., with the women's 6K, then the men's 5.2-mile run will follow at 10:30 a.m.

LAST TIME OUT
The Cowboys scored 42 points to top the field, and Sylvester Barus joined an elite group in OSU history when he crossed the finish line first to give the Pokes their fourth consecutive individual title and his second straight crown for OSU. He adds to former Cowboy Kirubel Erassa's victory in 2014 and Cerake Geberkidane's win in 2015.
Barus controlled the race from the start and led the pack from the second kilometer on. He took home the title of individual champion in 24:15.9.
Senior Hassan Abdi finished just six seconds behind Barus, taking second, and Luis Martinez and Christian Liddell also finished in the top-10, claiming sixth and 10th overall, respectively. Senior Matthew Fayers capped off the top-five for the Cowboys with a time good enough for 24th.
The No. 22 Cowgirls saw their second Jamboree loss in seven years as they finished fourth, but the OSU women claimed second with some potential from some talented freshmen.
Michelle Magnani ran for the OSU logo after running unattached last year, and was the Cowgirls' highest finisher at 16th.
Senior Molly Sughroue wasn't far behind, finishing 19th overall in 21:43.5 in her final home race at the OSU Cross Country Course.
Sophomore Kaytlyn Larson was the third-highest finisher for the Cowgirls at 23rd overall. Freshman Sinclaire Johnson also ran a solid race for OSU, finishing fourth for the Cowgirls and 27th overall.

COACH BOBBY LOCKHART – MEET COMMENTS
On his meet expectations
"This is our second test after the Jamboree. We have a couple of guys that are running that haven't raced yet and we're going to rest a few. Again, a lot like the Jamboree, we kind of want to test our fitness. We've had a few good workouts from the Jamboree until now, so the guys are really starting to kind of come into stride. They look really good and we're really going to kind of see where they are. We'll do a little bit of pack running and see where they are."

On the impact of the freshmen
"Honestly, they've kind of exceeded our expectations. Really just the group as a whole. Adding up their score at the Jamboree, they would have placed pretty well within the meet. So, we're excited. They're handling the training and they've been a wonderful addition to the team."

On how much attention is paid to weekly rankings
""We look at them. I usually find out when you guys post them on Twitter. But, it doesn't really mean much. We know what we're capable of at the national meet. Rankings are rankings. They don't really mean much. But, they don't really matter too much, no."

THE FIELD
Men
Akron, Bucknell, Cornell University, Duquesne, George Washington, James Madison, Kent State, Lehigh, Loyola, North Carolina, Oklahoma State (9), Penn State, UC Davis, Villanova, William & Mary

Women
Akron, Bucknell, Buffalo, Cornell University, Dartmouth, George Washington, James Madison, Kent State, Lehigh, Loyola, North Carolina, Oklahoma State (26), Penn State (10), Princeton, UC Davis, Villanova (15), West Virginia (29), William & Mary

Oklahoma State Men
Hassan Abdi, Sylvester Barus, Ben Butler, Nic Butts, Matthew Fayers, Noah Gade, Alec Haines, Christian Liddell, Luis Martinez, Isai Rodriguez, Ryan Smeeton

Oklahoma State Women
Ariane Ballner, Jennifer Celis, Kaylee Dodd, Kami Hankins, Emily Helms, Sinclaire Johnson, Kaytlyn Larson, Michelle Magnani, Taylor Somers, Molly Sughroue, Cheyenne Walden, Gintare Zenkeviciute

OKLAHOMA STATE IN THE RANKINGS
The Oklahoma State Cowboy cross country team has held strong at No. 9 in the rankings again this week after a big shakeup saw Southern Utah climb to No. 6 and Northern Arizona hold at the top of the nation for a fourth-straight week as the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association's No. 1 team.
The Pokes have held steady in the top 10, starting the season at No. 10 and moving to No. 9 in week two and remaining there since. The Cowboys moved up in their off-week in part to Iona falling a spot to No. 10.
For the fifth-straight poll, OSU leads the Big 12 as the highest-ranked program. The Cyclones of Iowa State held at No. 14, and Texas is still receiving votes.
On the women's side, the Cowgirls slid to No. 26 during their off-week, but still are second in the conference.
Iowa State slipped to No. 18, and West Virginia remains tied at No. 29 with Mississippi State. Baylor and Texas both remain outside the top 30, but are still receiving votes.

THE BEST IN THE MIDWEST
Under coach Dave Smith, the Cowboy cross country program has been one of the most consistent in the country.
The Pokes have won three national titles, nine Big 12 championships and finished in the top-10 at the NCAA Championships in nine of his 11 seasons as head coach.
In addition to the trophies and accolades throughout the years, their consistency is best represented by their dominance of the Midwest Region which they have held for 57-straight weeks, dating back to August 2011.
It is the longest streak in the NCAA, and it isn't even close.
Including the 2010 season, the Cowboys have been No. 1 in the Midwest for 67 of the past 68 weeks.
In the one week they weren't No. 1 in the Midwest, Oklahoma took the spot after breaking up OSU's Midwest Region title streak. But the Pokes made up for it by winning an NCAA title. It was Smith's first of three at OSU and the program's second of four.

VETERAN LEADERSHIP
The Cowboys look to build upon their eighth-consecutive Jamboree victory this weekend. Led by seniors Sylvester Barus and Hassan Abdi, who finished first and second overall, respectively, OSU will look to repeat as Penn State Open champs after winning the title in 2016.
Last season, Abdi was named Big 12 Cross Country Runner of the Year and a 2016 All-American after being the Cowboys' highest finisher at the NCAA Championships.
The Cowboys returned a familiar top four to run behind in Abdi, Barus, senior Luis Martinez and junior Christian Liddell. Martinez and Liddell earned All-Big 12 honors for OSU last season en route to leading the men's squad to its ninth-straight Big 12 title.
With a veteran core and new faces looking to emerge, the Cowboys have a chance to add to an already historic program with a 10th-straight conference win and Dave Smith's fourth NCAA title when the team heads to this year's championship in Louisville, Kentucky.