2011 Men's Cross Country - Year In Review
Bob Braman, Head Coach
Kenny Jesensky, Volunteer Assistant
Click here to see individual mug shots
Jessica Parry, Amanda Winslow, Mike Fout, Wes Rickman
2011 Men's Cross Country - Year In Review | |
| Coaching Staff Bob Braman, Head Coach Kenny Jesensky, Volunteer Assistant Click here to see individual mug shots |
Jessica Parry, Amanda Winslow, Mike Fout, Wes Rickman |
AJ del Valle, Miami
Daniel Millay, Orlando
2011 Roster - By Name
L
T PY
R Name Cl Ltr Hometown (Prior School)
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Marc Akbar Fr-R Palm Coast (Saint Joseph Academy)
William Bridges Fr Orlando (Edgewater)
* Jacob Brooks Jr-R * Fort Myers (Fort Myers)
Dominick Cabrera Fr-R Miami (Columbus)
* AJ del Valle Fr Miami (Columbus)
* David Forrester Jr * Billinge, England (Liverpool)
* Mike Fout Sr *** LaPorte, Ind. (LaPorte)
Darrin Gibson So-R Tampa (Robinson)
Daniel Millay Fr Orlando (Doctor Phillips)
* Breandan O'Neill Sr Sandymount, Ireland (Dublin City)
* Seth Proctor Sr-R * Orlando (Edgewater)
Sean Quinn So-R Punta Gorda (Bishop Verot)
* Wes Rickman Jr ** Peyton, Colo. (Falcon)
* Jakub Zivec So * Litomerice, Czech Republic (Gymnazium Josefa Jungmann)
2011 Conference Awards
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David Forrester Atlantic Coast Conference - All-Conference
Mike Fout Atlantic Coast Conference - All-Conference
Breandan O'Neill Atlantic Coast Conference - All-Conference
Seth Proctor Atlantic Coast Conference - All-Conference
AJ del Valle Atlantic Coast Conference - Freshman of the Year
All-Conference - 5
2011 All-Americans
Name Organization
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David Forrester NCAA - All-American - 16th place
Mike Fout NCAA - All-American - 32nd place
All-Americans - 2
2011 Schedule and Results
GAME |
SCORE |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Covered Bridge Open Boone, N.C. |
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| Clemson Invitational Clemson, S.C. |
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| Florida State Invitational | |||||
| Notre Dame Invitational South Bend, Ind. |
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| Pre-Nationals Terre Haute, Ind. |
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| ACC Championship Clemson, S.C. |
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| NCAA South Regional Tuscaloosa, Ala. |
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| NCAA Championship Terre Haute, Ind. |
EOY StatsRef Overall Home Away Neutral ------------------------------------------------ FSU record is 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0
2011 Atlantic Coast Conference Results 1 North Carolina State 51 2 Florida State 55 3 North Carolina 84 4t Virginia Tech 116 4t Duke 116 6 Virginia 169 7 Wake Forest 212 8 Maryland 232 9 Georgia Tech 239 10 Clemson 268 11 Boston College 281 12 Miami 372
2011 EOY Stats
Team Overall Name Races Top 7 Top 10 Wins =============================================== Seth Proctor 8 8 2 1 Mike Fout 6 6 5 0 David Forrester 6 6 4 1 AJ del Valle 6 6 1 0 Jakub Zivec 5 5 1 0 Breandan O'Neill 5 5 1 0 Jacob Brooks 5 4 1 0 Wes Rickman 4 4 1 0 Sean Quinn 4 3 0 0 Marc Akbar 3 2 1 0 Dominick Cabrera 2 2 0 0 John Grellner 1 1 0 0
Proctor Passes Test.
FSU cross country vet wins; 'Noles solid in season opener.
By Bob Thomas, Seminoles.com
BOONE, NC - Despite sitting the majority of their top runners, the Florida State men's and women's cross country teams turned in solid performances in the season-opening meet Friday, at the Covered Bridge Invitational in Boone, N.C.
Senior Seth Proctor grabbed top individual honors, covering the 8-kilometer (4.9 miles) State Farm Fields course in 25:29.1 for the victory. Proctor won the race going away and was followed across the line by junior David Forrester, who was fourth overall in 25.47.6.
"Proctor picked right up where he left off at the end of track season," said FSU coach Bob Braman, whose Seminoles finished second overall in the 11-team field. "He was the eighth man and the alternate on our NCAA team last year and looked really, really good. If we're going to be a good team we're going to need Seth to be very good."
Southern Indiana, the seventh-ranked team in the USTFCCCA Division II preseason poll, captured the men's team title with 42 points. The Seminoles, who did not race All-American Mike Fout, junior Wes Rickman and sophomore Jakub Zivec, were second with 59 points, comfortably in front of third place High Point (85).
"I'm happy - real pleased - because we ran a lot of the young guys," Braman added. "They did a great job. There's a lot of room for improvement. We don't have a lot of depth and we're going to need the Jacob Brooks' of the world, along with (Sean) Quinn and (Dominic) Cabrera, to step up and help us out."
Brooks, who battled injury and a deeper 2010 Seminole lineup a year ago, was FSU's third finisher at the early-evening race. He covered the distance in 26:13.5 and was followed by Quinn (19th, 26:24.8) and Cabrera (21st, 26:28.0), none of whom have any significant experience racing with the Seminoles' front-line runners.
Coach Karen Harvey's FSU women's team finished third in a 12-team field, despite leaning on what is essentially a B-team lineup of untested varsity runners.
The Seminoles claimed four of the top 13 places, led by redshirt freshman Chelsi Woodruff, who was fourth overall in the 5-kilometer (3.1 miles) race, finishing in 18:41.3. Redshirt sophomore Kaitlyn Iselborn was eighth (18:53.2), followed by Australian newcomer Linden Hall (12th, 19:01.7) and true freshman Teresa Ristow (13th, 19:15.6). Kara Taylor (52nd, 20:18.8) rounded out the Seminole scorers.
"I thought Chelsi Woodruff ran well for us coming off a redshirt freshman year," said Harvey.
UNF captured the team title with 37 points, followed by Wake Forest (74) and FSU (89). Host Appalachian State was fourth (109), just in front of East Carolina (111).
Harvey's most experienced runners from last year's NCAA runner-up team, All-Americans Jessica Parry and Amanda Winslow, did not compete. Neither did 1,5000-meter NCAA All-American Hannah Brooks or NJCAA All-American Violah Lagat.
That doesn't mean those who did not compete were along for a Labor Day retreat. Both teams will continue to train in the North Carolina mountains and get away from the oppressive Florida heat. It is also a chance for the Seminoles, who have only been back at school training for two weeks, an opportunity to bond.
MEN 8K RACE Place Name Points Time ===== ========================= ====== ======== 1 Seth Proctor 1 25:29.1 4 David Forrester 4 25:47.6 14 Jacob Brooks 14 26:13.5 19 Sean Quinn 19 26:24.8 21 Dominick Cabrera 21 26:28.0
Mission Accomplished.
Men win, women second in controlled Clemson Invite effort.
By Bob Thomas, Seminoles.com
SENECA, SC - Under controlled conditions the Florida State cross country teams knocked off some rust in Friday's first full varsity event of the season and came away from the Clemson Invitation encouraged about the future.
Neither coach Bob Braman's FSU men or Karen Harvey's women laced up the spikes, but instead followed a pre-ordained plan to run conservatively early and finish strong. Not only did the Seminole teams accomplish their goals, the men came away with a lopsided victory, while the women finished second to the host Tigers.
"We ran under control for first three miles - we ran as a pack - and then took off," said Braman. "We ran really hard from 3-5 (miles). ... We did exactly what we wanted to accomplish."
Senior Michael Fout picked up where he left off after earning All-American honors in 2010, placing third over the 8-kilometer in 24:13.7 with a strong finishing surge. On his heels was junior co-captain Wes Rickman, the second of five Seminoles in the top eight, who finished fourth (24:16.5).
They were chased to the finish by Seminole senior Seth Proctor (sixth, 24:24.9), sophomore Jakub Zivec (seventh, 24:28.0) and freshman AJ de Valle (eight, 24:32.1), who was making his Florida State debut.
The Seminoles, ranked No. 8 nationally, finished with 28 points; well ahead of runner-up Virginia Tech (70) and Davidson (87).
Harvey's FSU women had a little less time to run down the front-runners in the 6-kilometer race.
"We just tempoed the first 5k and let them loose the last kilometer," said Harvey. "I think it went pretty well. It was pretty treacherous to have eight people just take off and start flying. I think the girls cut each other off."
The Seminoles, ranked No. 6 nationally, very nearly ran down a victory, finishing nine points behind the host Clemson Tigers, 45-54. Furman was a distant third with 111 points.
Junior All-American Jessica Parry led the charge with an eighth-place finish (21:17.8). Senior Hannah Brooks, an All-American in the 1,500 meters on the track in the spring, was 10th (21:18.8) and the first of five consecutive `Noles across the finish line.
Junior transfer Violah Lagat was 11th (21:19.1) in her Seminole cross country debut, followed by junior Kayleigh Tyerman (12th, 21:25.2) Amanda Winslow (13th, 21:28.5) and freshman Colleen Quigley (14th, 21:29.0). Just behind the pack was freshman Aubree Worden (16th, 21:35.2).
In addition to Lagat, Tyerman, Quigley and Worden were also making their FSU debuts.
"I think we came out of it very well," Harvey said. "It's an end to a great week; a hard week. ...
"The girls gave me a lot of really good feedback (about the course). I can tell they're all really excited. They got a lot out of it."
And ultimately, that was the purpose of the trip to Musser Farms, which will play host to the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship on Oct. 29. The Seminole men and women are defending ACC champions.
"The footing is really a little rough," Braman said of the course, which winds through a peach grove over hard clay. "It rolls a little bit, but nothing that's going to make a flat-land team like us disadvantaged.
"We learned a lot. I'm glad we came. We'll develop a strategy for the conference meet from being here."
MEN 8K RACE Place Name Points Time ===== ========================= ====== ======== 3 Mike Fout 3 24:13.71 4 Wes Rickman 4 24:16.55 6 Seth Proctor 6 24:24.98 8 Jakub Zivec 7 24:28.05 9 AJ del Valle 8 24:32.12 52 Marc Akbar 42 25:33.16 57 Jacob Brooks 46 25:38.87 59 Sean Quinn 25:46.85
Steamy At Sundown.
Seminoles post runner-up finishes at FSU Cross Country Invitational.
By Bob Thomas, Seminoles.com
TALLAHASSEE, FL - Hot and steamy conditions, less than ideal for fast times, did not diminish the competitive environment for Friday evening's Florida State Invitational cross country meet at Apalachee Regional Park.
While both the Florida State men and women elected to train through the meet without the services of their complete varsity squads, each came through with some solid individual performances, translating to runner-up finishes in the 17-team field.
"The weather completely changed the event, at least in terms of what I thought our kids and some of the other teams' kids were ready to run - easily 5-10 seconds (slower) a mile," FSU men's coach Bob Braman said. "It was really hot and muggy."
The evening's action began with the women competing in the 5-kilometer race. FSU graduate student Jackie Drouin, running unattached, pulled away for the individual victory in a course record 17:30.23. Astrid Leutert, who like Drouin only has outdoor track & field eligibility remaining with the Seminoles, was third in 17:47.21.
FSU women's coach Karen Harvey's scoring squad was led by redshirt freshman Chelsi Woodruff (18:00.76), who was sixth overall and followed closely by junior teammate Kaitlyn Iselborn (18:09.21) in eighth. Freshman Linden Hall was 11th (18:13.95) and followed by Kailand Cosgrove (17th, 18:41.94) and Kara Taylor (18th, 18:51.13) to round out the scoring.
"It was great to see almost our entire team out there - our Strider program and our next eight on our A-team," said Harvey, who sent 31 Seminoles in FSU singlets into action. "It was a lot to watch."
Harvey told her team to take a conservative approach early on in the heat and finish strong.
"As a group, even though it was super humid this year, I thought we ran better than we did last year," Harvey added. "They listened to instructions and were able to navigate through some tough conditions.
"I'm really pleased with Chelsi. She's making a lot of improvements and is looking to be in our top seven. She's our solid eighth runner. That takes a lot on our team."
The FSU women finished second, 10 points behind UNF, which captured its first FSU Invitational team title with 40 points.
Braman's men also settled for a runner-up finish, coming up 18 points shy of Auburn's winning total of 38. The Tigers got a 1-2 finish from Kane Grimster (25:30.11) and Niklas Buhner (25:35.19).
Florida State redshirt freshman Marc Akbar (25:49.01) and Jacob Brooks (25:54.98) - a pair of Florida natives running in front of family and friends - led the way, finishing eighth and ninth, respectively. It was a strong bounce-back effort by the duo, which labored through the late stages of last week's Clemson Invitational Pre-ACC meet.
"Akbar and Brooks struggled a little be in Pre-ACC's and they both competed really well today," Braman said. "Akbar kicked Brooks down in the end. Brooks was going big or going home. He really went after it. Akbar really looked good and moved through. The kid looks very comfortable.
"I'm real pleased with those guys and of course they both earned a trip to go to Notre Dame now. We'll be able to run nine guys up there under much cooler, faster conditions. We'll see what they can do."
Seth Proctor (11th, 25:59.45), Sean Quinn (16th, 26:23.48) and John Grellner (22nd, 26:36.98) rounded out the Seminole scorers.
On a day when the weather conditions led all the coaches to put more stock in performance as opposed to the stopwatch, Braman could not have been happier.
"I thought we had a great meet," he said. "I thought we had a really, really good meet. The course has been the best it's been and I think it will be in great shape tomorrow. The county did a lot of work, our Florida State people did a lot of work on it.
"I was real, real pleased with (the performance). We wanted to run as many varsity guys as we could without affecting their eligibility for the fans that came out. We had a real good crowd. ... I thought we competed well. I'm not worried about the times."
MEN 8K RACE Place Name Points Time ===== ========================= ====== ======== 8 Marc Akbar 7 25:49.01 9 Jacob Brooks 8 25:54.98 11 Seth Proctor 9 25:59.45 16 Sean Quinn 13 26:23.48 22 John Grellner 19 26:36.98 30 AJ del Valle 27 26:59.30 44 Dominick Cabrera 40 27:32.59
By Bob Thomas
Special Delivery!
Cross Country 'Noles withstand elements, shine at Notre Dame.
SOUTH BEND, IN - Battered by rain, wind and blasts of cold air, the Florida State cross country teams delivered strong Notre Dame Invitational performances Friday - a day made for the postman.
Karen Harvey's women routed the field in blustery conditions, with junior Amanda Winslow delivering a fourth-place finish to lead a trio of top 10 Seminoles. The seventh-ranked Seminoles totaled 54 points and were 62 clear of 18th-ranked runner-up Arkansas. They made a strong case for a major leap in the polls by blasting No. 2 New Mexico (164). In all, FSU dispatched five nationally-ranked teams from a field of 28, which included 26 with regional rankings.
Not to be outdone, FSU senior Mike Fout once again flourished on his home soil, placing third overall as the Seminole men posted a runner-up finish to BYU. Fout flourished, despite losing a shoe which required him to stop at one point, covering the five-mile course in 24:01. A mere two seconds separated the All-American from nearby La Porte, Ind. from race winner Miles Batty of BYU (23:59). Princeton's Donn Cabral was second in 24:00.
"It was a good day and a great start to our season," said Harvey, whose `Noles grabbed five of the top 18 spots. "I felt so bad for the kids. The course wasn't fast at all."
Harvey said a "sheet or rain and wind" buffeted the Seminoles over the final mile of the 5-kilometer race at the Notre Dame Golf Course.
Winslow seemed undeterred from the start.
"Big, big props to Amanda Winslow," Harvey said. "She got off the (starting) line perfectly."
Winslow splashed her way through the soaked course in 17:06 as the temperature dropped to 50 degrees, which felt much colder given the rain and 20 mph winds. Close on her heels were fellow junior co-captain Jessica Parry, who was sixth in 17:11, and grad student Hannah Brooks (10th, 17:16).
The Seminole women got a big lift from a pair of newcomers - junior transfer Violah Lagat and freshman Colleen Quigley - who paired up and raced across the line in 16th and 18th place, respectively. In their Division I debuts, Lagat crossed the line in 17:22, while Quigley was right behind at 17:24. Quigley was the first freshman to finish in the field of 225 runners.
In all, six of nine FSU women were making their competitive Division I debuts against a quality field.
"I think this really is a good start," said Harvey. "Our top five spread (18 seconds, 14 places) was a little more than I wanted. ... We've got a lot of building to do."
FSU men's coach Bob Braman brought a considerably more experienced team to Notre Dame than the women, but was nonetheless pleased with the fight the `Noles brought to the table. With Fout leading the charge, the Seminoles stuck all five scorers in the top 29 and dispatched seven nationally ranked teams.
"We went into it knowing it was going to be a challenge and from a coaching standpoint I was hoping it was going to be a challenge," Braman said. "You can't run fast this time of year, but you can compete hard. We did that today. ...
"The bonus is we beat some teams and got some (national at-large) points. The big bonus was we had weather we had to deal with. We got rain, we got cold, we got wind. I thought we handled it well."
Junior David Forrester was the second FSU finisher, placing 18th (24:33), right in front of redshirt senior Seth Proctor (20th, 24:34) and junior co-captain Wes Rickman (23rd, 24:39). Sophomore Jakub Zivec was 29th in 24:47.
A year ago, Proctor was the alternate on FSU's NCAA runner-up team. Riding a strong track season, he has become a formidable cog in the Seminoles' lineup.
"He's going to be pretty darn good," Braman said of Proctor. "He runs really under control and passes people along the way."
Zivec, the ACC Freshman of the Year in 2010, turned in what Braman described as, "one of his better races; right up there with ACC's last year." The Czech-born Zivec finished three spots in front of Clemson's Ty McCormack, another sophomore, who won the Clemson Invitational two weeks ago.
"Knock on wood, we're going to get better," Braman said.
Of course the individual story of the day was Fout, who held his own against Batty, who in April ran the fifth-fastest 1,500-meter time (3:36.25) in NCAA history. Batty began his collegiate career in 2005 - it was deterred by a two-year mission - and finished 15th at last year's NCAA Cross Country Championships. Fout was 28th.
To keep Batty and Cabral - a five-time All-American - within striking distance was no small feat.
"To stop and put a shoe back on - that's hard to run people down," said Braman, who said Fout drew from a strong supporting contingent of friends and family from his hometown. "I'm really excited for Mike."
MEN 5-Mile RACE Place Name Points Time ===== ========================= ====== ======== 3 Mike Fout 3 24:01 18 David Forrester 18 24:33 20 Seth Proctor 20 24:34 23 Wes Rickman 23 24:39 29 Jakub Zivec 29 24:47 64 Breandan O'Neill 64 25:08 65 AJ del Valle 65 25:09 167 Marc Akbar 26:20 183 Jacob Brooks 26:42
Rousing Women's Win!
Winslow, tight pack lead XC 'Noles to Pre-Nationals victory; men fourth.
By Bob Thomas, Seminoles.com
TERRE HAUTE, IN - At the midway point in what Florida State cross country coach Karen Harvey has described as a "rebuilding year," the Seminoles once again appear to be shaping up as a national contender.
The Seminoles won their second consecutive major meet Sunday, overwhelming the Pre-Nationals field at the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course in Terre Haute, Ind. with a miniscule 46-point total.
FSU placed three runners in the top eight, five in the top 14 and six in the top 20. The 'Noles entered the meet ranked No. 3 in the USTFCCCA national polls and dispatched No. 4 Georgetown, the runner-up, by 53 points. Fifth-ranked Colorado was fourth, behind Michigan.
"They took a one-on-one race with a great Georgetown team and were really determined to win the meet," Harvey said. "That determination really showed."
Junior co-captain Amanda Winslow led the charge with a fourth-place finish over the windy, warm and slow 6-kilometer course in 20:44. Violah Lagat (seventh, 20:47) and Hannah Brooks (eighth, 20:48) continued the assault on the field, followed by freshman Colleen Quigley (13th, 21:03) and Jessica Parry (14th, 21:03). In short, the Seminoles put together an impressive 19-second, 1-5 split that was no match for the field of 40 teams and 303 finishers.
"I'm very pleased with that," Harvey said of the split. "We've never done that since I've been at Florida State. That split for 6k is very, very good."
Kayleigh Tyerman was the sixth Seminole finisher, crossing in 20th (21:20). Redshirt freshman Chelsi Woodruff rounded out the FSU finishers (86th, 22:23) in her first 6k race.
Winslow stayed with the lead pack through the first half of the race, but fell off the pace, only to recover over the last 1,500 meters when she found Lagat at her side.
"Faith and courage has been our motto all season," said Winslow. "I'm so thankful Violah came up and really helped me. She was encouraging me in the end, 'Come on Winslow.'"
"That took a lot of courage to do that," Harvey said of Winslow's resolve. "She regrouped when she saw Violah. ... The response was fantastic."
A lot like the Seminoles' overall performance.
"Obviously, Violah Lagat and Colleen Quigley stood out the most from improving from Notre Dame," Harvey added. "You've got to hand it to the whole team. ...
"We still have quite a few people who have big room for improvement. ACC's are in two weeks and it's all about keeping them healthy and hungry."
The collective performance of the Seminoles certainly should provide a boost as the team locks in on continuing their ACC dominance on Oct. 29 at Clemson.
"We were all really happy with that," Winslow said of the tightly-knit pack of Seminole finishers. "Thirty seconds [between Nos. 1-5] was kind of our goal. ...The new girls did pretty amazing. That's why we went there, for the new girls to see the course. I think it worked out pretty well."
The Seminole men were not as fortunate. They tied for fourth in the 35-team field, but were at less than full strength, with junior co-captain Wes Rickman held out with a hamstring strain and sophomore Jakub Zivec nursing one of his own.
Those ailments didn't keep the 11th-ranked Seminoles from turning in some outstanding individual efforts as junior David Forrester and senior Mike Fout finished fifth and sixth in 24:09 and 24:14, respectively.
Senior transfer Breandan O Neill, in just his second appearance in an FSU singlet, was 27th over the 8-kilometer course in 24:46.
"I felt like we did really well at 1-2-3," FSU men's coach Bob Braman said. "Dave and Mike ran a team-type race. ... Breandan ran really well. We'll need him down the road."
Without Rickman, and with Zivec less than full speed after spending a week on the shelf, the 'Noles simply couldn't keep pace with team champion Colorado (82 points), Portland (104) and Iona (109). FSU finished with 186 points, dead-locked with Eastern Kentucky.
Seth Proctor (71st, 25:25), who faded over the final 3,000 meters, and Zivec (80th, 25:32) rounded out FSU's top five. Freshman AJ del Valle was 193rd (26:38) in his first look at the NCAA Championship meet course in Terre Haute, Ind.
"We're not full strength and we're just not deep enough when we're not full strength," Braman said. "We've got work to do. We're still a top 20 team without Wes, but we're not a top 10. ...
"I felt like the efforts were there, we're just beat up right now. We've got ACC's coming up and we're the defending champions. We've just got to get healthy in two weeks, or less than two weeks."
MEN 8K RACE Place Name Points Time ===== ========================= ====== ======== 5 David Forrester 5 24:09 6 Mike Fout 6 24:14 27 Breandan O'Neill 27 24:46 71 Seth Proctor 70 25:25 80 Jakub Zivec 78 25:32 193 AJ del Valle 178 26:38
Champs Again! FSU women win fourth ACCth cross country title; men come up short.
CLEMSON, SC - In one of the most dominant performances in Atlantic Coast Conference history, Karen Harvey's top-ranked Florida State placed six runners in the top 10 en route to a fourth consecutive league championship Saturday at Musser Farms.
Amanda Winslow led the charge with a runner-up finish, covering the 6-kilometer course in 20:12.3. The junior co-captain was followed immediately by four teammates - Hannah Brooks, Jessica Parry, Violah Lagat and Colleen Quigley - as the Seminoles totaled just 20 points, matching the ACC record set by Duke in 2005.
Kayleigh Tyerman was 10th as the Seminoles out-distanced runner-up Boston College by 59 points. All six earned All-ACC honors. Quigley earned ACC Rookie of the Year honors as the top-finishing freshman.
The Florida State men came up four points shy of successfully defending its ACC championship, falling to NC State by a 51-55 margin.
Senior Mike Fout and junior David Forrester ran in the front pack the entire way, finishing fourth and fifth in 23:11.2 and 23:13.5, over the 8-kilometer course. Breandan O Neill and Seth Proctor paired up to finish 12th and 13th, but the Seminoles were undone by a strong second pack of Wolfpack runners.
Freshman AJ del Valle gave the Seminoles a sweep of the ACC Rookie of the Year honors, finishing 21st overall.
MEN 8K RACE Place Name Points Time ===== ========================= ====== ======== 4 Mike Fout 4 23:11.2 5 David Forrester 5 23:13.5 12 Breandan O'Neill 12 23:45.5 13 Seth Proctor 13 23:47.4 21 AJ del Valle 21 24:06.9 25 Wes Rickman 25 24:11.5 99 Jacob Brooks 79 26:05.5
By Bob Thomas, Seminoles.com.
Broom, Broom!
Seminole men and women sweep NCAA South Region cross country titles.
TUSCALOOSA, AL - As he watched Florida State runners David Forrester, Mike Fout and Breandan O'Neill stream across the finish line - 1-2-4 - coach Bob Braman felt confident his Seminoles were on their way to an NCAA South Region title.
Braman let out a sigh of relief when sophomore Jakub Zivec - "Kuba" as he's known among teammates - finished 15th, with Seth Proctor three spots behind him.
"We're excited to be back to where we think we belong - to be a region champion and a potential top 10 team," Braman said, after the Seminoles captured their first regional title since 2006, Saturday at the Harry Pritchett Cross Country Course. "We're back in the mix."
Karen Harvey's Florida State women, ranked No. 1 in the country, spent the better part of their 6-kilometer race running as a pack, about 10 seconds off the lead pace set by three Florida runners. Assured of no worse than an at-large berth to the NCAA Championship entering the race, the Seminoles were able to bide their time to the end.
That's when the trio of Amanda Winslow, Hannah Brooks and Violah Lagat authored a thunderous kick, overwhelming the Florida trio with 300 meters remaining, en route to a 1-2-3 sweep. The Seminoles placed all seven runners in the top 20, running away with a second consecutive NCAA South Region title.
Winslow, FSU's junior co-captain, captured her first individual victory of the season in 20:33.4, followed by Brooks (20:34.1) and Lagat (20:35.0).
"We treated it like heats in a track race," Winslow said. "You just had to get through the race, qualify and stay healthy. We knew the plan was to pound it in the last mile and that's what we did. It was really awesome to be surrounded by my teammates throughout the whole race. We all kept pushing each other during the entire race."
The 1-2-3 sweep was a first for the Seminole women at the NCAA Regional and a clear message that Harvey's team is poised to make its strongest run yet at the school's first NCAA Championship.
"It was cool; it was good to see," Harvey said. "We had a few problems; we always have a few problems."
Freshman Colleen Quigley was 13th overall (20:55.3), chased by teammates Kayleigh Tyerman (16th, 20:57.8) and Aubree Worden (17th, 21:05.2). Jessica Parry was 20th (21:18.1).
"Kayleigh Tyerman really stepped up. Colleen is still getting over her ankle. ... Obviously our top 3 really ran incredible. They followed the race plan. The last kilometer they ran 2:55 with a tight up-hill. They were rolling."
Florida State's depth - all seven Seminoles earned All-Region honors - provided the decisive edge as they rolled past runner-up and fourth-ranked Vanderbilt 34-54, with Florida fading to third with 62 points.
The 16th-ranked FSU men entered the day confident they were ready for the bump up to the 10-kilometer distance, but a little wary of how they would hold up without junior co-captain Wes Rickman, who sat out as he continues to rehab a sore calf.
"Kuba did it," Braman said, pointing to Zivec as the difference-maker. "That was huge! He looked fantastic today."
Two weeks removed from walking off the course at the ACC Championship, Zivec showed no ill effects of a tender back and hamstring, which have hampered him through the middle of the season.
"We had four great races and just a steady race from Seth," Braman said. "It was good; a lot of fun. O'Neill took the initiative and started pounding it with a 1 1/2 (miles) to go. I thought we were going to go 1-2-3."
Forrester, a junior, scored his first collegiate victory in 30:43.3 with Fout, FSU's senior co-captain, right behind in 30:46.0. O'Neill, a senior transfer from Dublin, Ireland, was fourth in 30:57.2.
"Today it was about my teammates," said Forrester. "Mike, Breandan and I are just really clicking on all cylinders. We've been working out phenomenally together all year. We just got to running and no one got close to us apart from one guy, and that person had a good race as well. It was just like the end of a training run to be honest."
Zivec (15th, 31:42.0) and Proctor (18th, 31:46.0) rounded out the Seminoles' scorers.
FSU's scoring five earned All-Region honors as it captured the team title with 40 points, followed by Florida (68), which also secured an automatic NCAA Championship berth. It extended the Seminoles' mastery of the Gators at regionals for a ninth consecutive year.
The Seminoles will have nine days to polish up their performances before the Nov. 21 NCAA Championships at the Lavern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course in Terre Haute, Ind., where they were national runner-ups in 2010.
MEN 10K RACE Place Name Points Time ===== ========================= ====== ======== 1 David Forrester 1 30:43.3 2 Mike Fout 2 30:46.0 4 Breandan O'Neill 4 30:57.2 15 Jakub Zivec 15 31:42.0 18 Seth Proctor 18 31:46.0 42 AJ del Valle 42 32:36.6 64 Sean Quinn 63 33:18.5
Close Encounter.
The FSU women finished fourth and the men 12th at NCAA Cross Country Championships.
TERRE HAUTE, IN - The same hazy, cool and damp conditions that were ideal for running at Monday's NCAA Cross Country Championships in many ways painted the mood of the Florida State women's team.
Karen Harvey's Seminoles came into the meet ranked No. 1 in the nation; a serious contender for the team title after back-to-back runner-up finishes behind two-time defending champion Villanova.
Though Hannah Brooks and Amanda Winslow captured All-American honors, finishing 28th and 34th, the Seminoles were saddled with a fifth consecutive podium finish as a consolation prize. Florida State finished fourth with 189 points, just 27 behind 2011 champion Georgetown (162). Washington (170) and Villanova (181) were second and third.
Bob Braman's men also received a pair of All-American performances and finished 12th overall; the third-best finish in 10 NCAA Championship appearances by the Seminoles. David Forrester posted a 16th-place finish - the best by a Seminole since Ken Misner was 13th in 1969 - and Mike Fout was 32nd in his final collegiate cross country race.
The disappointment of the team finish notwithstanding, the 27 points separating the Seminoles from a national title was the closest they had come in five consecutive NCAA appearances. FSU finished 34 points behind Villanova last season, while finishing second.
MEN 10K RACE Place Name Points Time ===== ========================= ====== ======== 16 David Forrester 12 29:40.6 32 Mike Fout 23 29:59.2 52 Breandan O'Neill 41 30:24.1 138 Jakub Zivec 107 31:07.1 196 Wes Rickman 196 32:19 202 Seth Proctor 165 31:49.4