Oct. 24, 2007
UPCOMING
With wildfires forcing mass evacuations and a state of emergency in many parts of Southern California, the Mountain West Conference announced Tuesday night that the 2007 MWC Cross Country Championships will move from San Diego to Albuquerque. New Mexico, which was scheduled to host the meet in 2008, will hold both the men’s and women’s races at the UNM North Golf Course on Saturday, starting at 10 a.m. Admission is free.
This is the second time in four years that fires have forced the relocation of the MWC Championship meet from San Diego to Albuquerque. In 2003, the meet was moved to the North Course three days before the races were scheduled to begin at Balboa Park.
For New Mexico distance running fans, the change of venue offers an unexpected chance to help the balanced Lobo men and women run for their first combined top-three conference finish since 1988 (men – 1st, WAC; women – 3rd, HCAC).
Saturday will also give Lobo fans a chance to watch senior Jeremy Johnson’s final collegiate race in his hometown. Johnson, a former Manzano High School standout, will be one of the favorites to win the men’s individual title after clocking the two fastest 8K times in the MWC this fall. The 2007 track All-American was held out of the Lobo Invitational in September.
MWC CHAMPIONSHIPS AT A GLANCE
Course: UNM North Golf Course – Home of the 2003 MWC Championships, 2002 & 2006 NCAA Mountain Region Championships.
Directions: Located near the corner of Yale Blvd. and Tucker Rd. on the UNM North Campus
(from I-25 ) Take Lomas exit and head east, towards the mountains, on Lomas Blvd. Turn left on Yale Blvd. and continue north before turning right on Tucker Rd. The golf course clubhouse and parking lot will be on the left.
Schedule (Mountain Time):
Men’s 8K Race – 10 a.m.
Women’s 6K Race – 11 a.m.
Awards Ceremony – 11:45 a.m.
Race Conditions: Saturday’s weather should be perfect for distance running. The forecast calls for mostly sunny skies with highs reaching the low 70s, 20% chance of rain and light winds. The humidity percentage will be low as well.
The Fields: All 9 MWC institutions sponsor women’s cross country. San Diego State, UNLV and Utah do not have men’s programs.
Nationally Ranked Teams:
Women’s (2) – No. 12 Colorado State, No. 17 BYU
Men’s (1) – No. 26 BYU
THE UNM TRAVEL TEAM
WOMEN:
Jr. Michelle Corrigan (Transfer from Mississippi State…Lobos’ top runner in every meet this fall)
Sr. Kara Henry (Transfer from Butler…2nd team all-Horizon League in `05 & `06…ran in 2004 & `05 NCAA meets)
So. Vanessa Ortiz (`06 MWC Fr. of the Year (18th)…Lobos’ No.2 runner in twice this fall…’05 N.M. 5A XC champ)
Jr. Carolyn Boosey (Transfer from St. Mary’s University in London…has scored in all 3 races in `07)
So. Polina Ermoshina (All-American Nordic skier for the Lobos…running 2nd career XC race on Saturday)
Sr. Sheyenne Lewis (Has scored 7 times in 13 career races…45th in MWC Championships debut last year)
Sr. Stasia Ploskonka (UNM 3K SC record holder…12 career XC races…1st MWC appearance since `04 – 44th)
MEN:
Sr. Jeremy Johnson (Top 8K time in MWC in `07 (school record)…3x MWC Athlete of the Week…10K All-American last spring)
Jr. Mat Ashton (Transfer from St. Mary’s in London…British Univ. 10K champ in `06…5th-best 8K in the MWC in `07)
So. Brock Hagerman (Transfer from Notre Dame…top Fr. in Big East in `06…has scored in all 3 races in `07)
Sr. Joseph Garcia (Scored 14 times in 16 career races…51st at `06 MWC meet…MWC 10K runner-up in track)
Jr. Lee Emanuel (Transfer from Sheffield (England) Hallam University…mid-distance specialist in track…4 races in `07)
So. Brian Vallie (Scored 2x in 5 career XC races…45th at `06 MWC meet…MWC 800m runner-up outdoors)
So. Alex Willis (Has scored 4 times in 9 meets…4 races this fall…43rd at `06 MWC Championships)
MEET INFORMATION/RESULTS
Complete information and results from the 2007 MWC Championships can be found on the official website of the host Mountain West Conference and New Mexico Lobos:
www.TheMWC.com or www.GoLobos.com
FROM HEAD COACH Joe Franklin
“Obviously there’s a lot of tragedy and devastation going on in San Diego right now and we’re just glad we had the support in place here to be able to step up and host this meet. It’s going to be fun at home though, especially with such a great distance running community here in Albuquerque, and we want to get a lot of people out to watch. It’s a last minute thing, but some of the best things in life happen last minute.”
“We want to get off to a good start to represent UNM in the Mountain West Conference. Our goal on the women’s side is to finish in the top three. We will be facing two ranked opponents in BYU (No. 17) and Colorado State (No. 12). We are also hoping to have at least three all-conference runners. For the men, they haven’t won a conference title since 1988 (Western Athletic Conference) and the best in the Mountain West Conference is third (2004 & `02). We are looking to be in the top-three. Air Force beat us by about 25 seconds at Pre-Nationals, but we are hoping to get three all-conference finishers and contend for the top spot. If Jeremy Johnson is in a good position with 1,000 meters left, that will give him a good shot to finish first overall. It should be a great race for us.”
FROM SENIOR Jeremy Johnson
“Nothing’s set in stone until it happens and anything can happen, but racing has been going great, training has been going the best it ever has in my life, so I’m just going to run as hard and hopefully things will fall together. When you get in a race, the point of getting in a race is winning. Whether you do that or not, as long as you know that with every ounce of energy and every bit of your heart you could, you tried to win, then hey, I think you did alright.”
NEW MEXICO CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS HISTORY
The UNM men and women will be competing in the Mountain West Conference Championship meet for the ninth time on Saturday. The following is the Lobos’ year-by-year results at the MWC Championship meet. First-year head coach Joe Franklin is the third coach to direct the Lobos at the MWC meet. Richard Shannahan coached the men and women in 1999 and Matt Henry led the Lobos from 2000-06.
MEN
Year…Place/Teams…Score…Top Finisher (8K time)
1999…6th/6…153 pts…Fr. Louis Cuellar – 27th (26:49)
2000…6th/6…153 pts…Fr. Chris Orrell – 17th (25:57)
2001…5th/6…87 pts…So. Matt Gonzales – 2nd (24:19)
2002…3rd/6…72 pts…So. Cameron Clarke – 3rd (24:41)
2003…4th/6…123 pts…Jr. Sean Flaherty – 18th (25:51)
2004…3rd/6…69 pts…Fr. Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott – 1st (24:44)
2005…5th/6…119 pts…Sr. Cameron Clarke – 11th (25:03.3)
2006…4th/6…89 pts…Sr. Juan Ortega – 4th (24:42.3)
WOMEN
Year…Place/Teams…Score…Top Finisher (6K time)
1999…8th/8…185 pts…So. Jackie Morgan – 17th (18:51 – 5K)
2000…7th/8…173 pts…So. Ashlee Othick – 15th (22:12)
2001…5th/8…139 pts…So. Sarah Gonzales – 16th (22:16)
2002…6th/8…173 pts…Jr. Sarah Gonzales – 16th (22:16)
2003…5th/8…141 pts…Sr. Sarah Gonzales – 7th (22:03)
2004…6th/8…163 pts…Jr. Jacquelyne Gallegos – 4th (22:16)
2005…2nd/9…74 pts…Jr. Timmie Murphy – 3rd (21:06.7)
2006…3rd/9…94 pts…Sr. Timmie Murphy – 4th (21:00.0)
The New Mexico men won five Western Athletic Conference titles, with four coming from 1963-68 and the last in 1988. Since joining the MWC in 1999, Lobo runners have earned first or second team all-conference honors 13 times – 3 apiece by Cameron Clarke and Matt Gonzales.
Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott earned Freshman and Runner of the Year honors in 2004 with his victory in San Diego. Kiptoo-Biwott was the fourth Lobo to win an individual conference title, joining Western Athletic Conference champions Ed Coleman (1963), John Baker (1964) and George Scott (1965 & `66).
The UNM women have never won a conference title, but have finished second three times, including 2005 in the expanded nine-team MWC field. The Lobos were also the High Country Athletic Conference runners-up in 1983 and `84.
Carole Roybal is the only New Mexico woman to win a conference title, taking the HCAC crown in 1986. The Lobos have had a first team all-MWC runner each of past four seasons, tied for the longest streak in program history (1983-86). UNM had gone eight years without an all-conference honoree of any kind and 11 years without a first team runner before Sarah Gonzales broke through with a seventh place finish in 2003. The Lobos have had runners earn first of second team all-MWC honors seven times – all since 2003. Last year, Timmie Murphy (2005 & `06) became the first UNM woman since the late 1980s to earn first team all-conference honors twice in a career.
Vanessa Ortiz, meanwhile, became the first New Mexico woman to win the MWC Freshman of the Year award, placing 18th overall to lead all conference rookies in 2006.
Matt Henry took home MWC Women’s Coach of the Year honors in 2005, the first conference honor for a UNM coach since Cindy Schmandt earned the HCAC Women’s Coach of the Year in 1983.
Men’s All-MWC Honorees
Year…Athlete…Finish
2001…Matt Gonzales – 1st team…2nd
2001…Ben Ortega – 2nd team…10th
2002…Cameron Clarke – 1st team…3rd
2002…Matt Gonzales – 1st team…5th
2004…Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott – 1st team…1st
2004…Matt Gonzales – 1st team…2nd
2004…Cameron Clarke – 2nd team…14th
2005…Cameron Clarke – 2nd team…11th
2006…Juan Ortega – 1st team…4th
2006…Jeremy Johnson – 1st team…5th
Women’s All-MWC Honorees
Year…Athlete…Finish
2003…Sarah Gonzales – 1st team 7th
2004…Jacquelyne Gallegos – 1st team 4th
2005…Timmie Murphy – 1st team 3rd
2005…Leslie Luna – 1st team 6th
2005…Jacquelyne Gallegos – 2nd team 10th
2006…Timmie Murphy – 1st team 4th
2006…Leslie Luna – 2nd team 8th
Other MWC Championship Award Winners
2004…Men’s Freshman of the Year – Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott (1st)
2005…Women’s Coach of the Year – Matt Henry (team 2nd)
2006…Women’s Freshman of the Year – Vanessa Ortiz (18th)
2006 MWC CHAMPIONSHIPS REWIND
Juan Ortega and Timmie Murphy both finished fourth to lead the New Mexico men and women to a pair of strong performances at the Mountain West Conference Cross Country Championships in Salt Lake City. The UNM women placed third (94 points), while the men were fourth with a score of 89, just one point shy of third place Colorado State. The start of the races were delayed 30 minutes due to frost on the Rose Park Golf Course.
Ortega, Murphy and Jeremy Johnson (fifth) all earned first team all-MWC honors, while Leslie Luna was a second team honoree (eighth). Vanessa Ortiz earned Women’s Freshman of the Year honors with an 18th place finish.
Murphy, who was third at the 2005 MWC meet, covered the 6,000-meter course in 21:74.4.Luna finished one spot shy of earning first team honors for the second straight year, crossing the line in 21:39.4. Ortiz was the first freshman across the finish line, recording a time of 22:24.4.
Ortega turned in one of the best performances of his career, completing the 8,000-meter course in 24:42.3 to earn all-conference honors for the first time. The Albuquerque Rio Grande product had finished no higher than 23rd (2005) in his three previous MWC Championship appearances.
LOBOS HOSTING MWC CHAMPIONSHIPS FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2003
It’s deja vu all over again for the University of New Mexico this weekend with the Mountain West Conference Cross Country Championships moving from fire-threatened San Diego to Albuquerque for the second time in four years. In 2003, former head coach Matt Henry volunteered to host the meet at the UNM North Golf Course on three days notice.
Senior Sarah Gonzales finished seventh to lead the New Mexico women to a fifth place finish in `03. Gonzales became the first UNM woman to earn a spot on the all-MWC team, garnering first team honors. In the men’s race, New Mexico finished fourth, while No. 9 Air Force edged 10th-ranked BYU 37-41 for its first MWC title. The second ranked Cougar women, meanwhile, breezed to their fifth consecutive league crown.
The 5-1 Gonzales was the story of the day as she turned in her best conference performance in her final collegiate race in her hometown. After recording an identical time and place of 16th and 22:16 at the past two MWC Championship meets, the former Cibola High School runner clocked a season-best 6,000-meter time of 22:03 to secure her best finish. Gonzales became the first Lobo woman to earn all-conference honors in seven years when Tangi Galloway finished 14th to garner second team honors at the 1996 Western Athletic Conference Championships.
Gonzales’ strong performance helped the Lobos hold off sixth place San Diego State, 141-143, to match their best MWC finish (2001) at that time.
On the men’s side, junior Sean Flaherty paced New Mexico for the fifth straight meet as the Lobos kept fifth place Wyoming at bay, 123-137. Flaherty completed the 8,000-meter course in 25:51 to finish 18th.
LAST TIME OUT: Pre-Nationals Invitational
Senior Jeremy Johnson finished a season-best fourth to lead the University of New Mexico men’s cross country team to a 20th place finish at the Pre-Nationals Invitational on Oct. 13 at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course. Only 24 seconds off the lead, the All-American Johnson had his best finish of the season and broke his own program record with a time of 23:27 on the 8,000-meter course.
Johnson notched the second-highest finish by a Lobo at the Pre-Nationals meet, behind only two-time cross country All-American Matt Gonzales who won the race in 2004. Johnson improved 44 spots and nearly a full minute on his 2006 Pre-Nationals performance.
Junior transfer Mat Ashton ran second on the team for the third time this fall, placing 51st with a time of 24:10, helping New Mexico (492 points) knock off Mountain West Conference rival Wyoming (763 points). The Lobos finished right on the heels of MWC power Air Force (477 points).
New Mexico junior transfer Lee Emanuel ran third on the team (142nd overall) with a time of 24:58. Emanuel was followed closely by senior Joseph Garcia (147th) and sophomore transfer Brock Hagerman (148th) who both finished with a time of 25:02 to cap the UNM scoring.
The Lobo women, meanwhile, placed 21st in the 38 team field. New Mexico was lead once again by junior transfer Michelle Corrigan who finished 48th with a time of 21:12 to help UNM (571 points) knock off Mountain region contenders Utah State (719 points) and Montana State (839 points). Senior transfer Kara Henry (113th) and junior transfer Carolyn Boosey (114th) followed Corrigan with identical times of 21:53.
KING OF THE MOUNTAIN
Jeremy Johnson took home back-to-back MWC Athlete of the Week awards on Oct. 3 (Oregon’s Bill Dellinger Invitational) and Oct. 17 (Pre-National’s Invitational), becoming the first UNM men’s runner to earn Athlete of the Week honors twice in the same season. Johnson also joined Jacquelyne Gallegos as the only runners in program history to earn three of the awards in a career.
New Mexico has won the men’s award six times since the 2004 season after claiming just three in the first five years of the Mountain West Conference (1999-2003).