Saturday, November 18
Louisville, Ky.
9 a.m.
Texas A&M
at
NCAA Championships
Aggie pair finish cross country season at NCAA Championships
Nov 18, 2017 | Cross Country
LOUISVILLE, Kentucky – Competing in the NCAA Cross Country Championships, and covering a distance of 10,000-meters for the second time within a week, the Texas A&M pair of senior Christian Farris and sophomore Jon Bishop placed 108th and 152nd amid a field of 250 finishers.
Running on the E.P. Tom Sawyer Park, Farris posted a time of 30:48.54 as Bishop clocked a time of 31:09.10.
"Whenever you're at the national meet for the first time it's a different experience," noted Texas A&M assistant coach Wendel McRaven. "They both had solid efforts. It was a learning experience for Jon Bishop. Obviously, we were hoping both of them would put themselves in contention for All-American honors.
"Sometimes it's just a matter of getting yourself in position. They got buried a little bit early, and then they found each other eventually. They were able to work together at that stage. But once you dig a hole like that and try to make up a whole lot of ground in the middle of the race, it usually doesn't end well."
Expected rain and thunderstorms moved the start time up an hour, and neither element was a factor in the race. However, gusty winds prevailed throughout the day.
Justyn Knight of Syracuse claimed the men's individual title in 29:00.11 as he passed a pair of Northern Arizona runners in the final stages of the race. Matthew Baxter (29:00.78) and Tyler Day (29:04.55), both of Northern Arizona, finished second and third as they led their squad to a successful defense of their team title.
Scoring 74 points won the team championship for Northern Arizona as Portland (127), BYU (165), Stanford (221), and Arkansas (259) rounded out the top five teams.
This season was one of achieving goals, and Farris relished his experience in the national championship meet.
"I'm not happy with it, but it was an all right performance," stated Farris. "I'm more disappointed with how I felt during the race, since my stomach was hurting. For my last race, I can't complain. It's been a good career.
"It's been the perfect last season and it was a dream come true to run in the NCAA Championships. Wearing the white uniform at a national meet has been such a dream for three years. I just wanted it every day and I finally got it."
For Bishop the national level race will have benefits for the young miler as he changes focus to the track and field season. It will also fuel his desire to compete on this level a few more times in his collegiate career.
"The conditions were pretty nice, compared to what we heard the weather was going to be like," said Bishop. "The footing on the course was really nice and it was just like another cross country race.
"It really was a learning experience. We got out fast and into a place where we wanted, and I think we were in 80th or 90th place. We tried to work from there, but we didn't obtain our goal of being All-American. I think we put together a nice race, especially for our first time here."
Running on the E.P. Tom Sawyer Park, Farris posted a time of 30:48.54 as Bishop clocked a time of 31:09.10.
"Whenever you're at the national meet for the first time it's a different experience," noted Texas A&M assistant coach Wendel McRaven. "They both had solid efforts. It was a learning experience for Jon Bishop. Obviously, we were hoping both of them would put themselves in contention for All-American honors.
"Sometimes it's just a matter of getting yourself in position. They got buried a little bit early, and then they found each other eventually. They were able to work together at that stage. But once you dig a hole like that and try to make up a whole lot of ground in the middle of the race, it usually doesn't end well."
Expected rain and thunderstorms moved the start time up an hour, and neither element was a factor in the race. However, gusty winds prevailed throughout the day.
Justyn Knight of Syracuse claimed the men's individual title in 29:00.11 as he passed a pair of Northern Arizona runners in the final stages of the race. Matthew Baxter (29:00.78) and Tyler Day (29:04.55), both of Northern Arizona, finished second and third as they led their squad to a successful defense of their team title.
Scoring 74 points won the team championship for Northern Arizona as Portland (127), BYU (165), Stanford (221), and Arkansas (259) rounded out the top five teams.
This season was one of achieving goals, and Farris relished his experience in the national championship meet.
"I'm not happy with it, but it was an all right performance," stated Farris. "I'm more disappointed with how I felt during the race, since my stomach was hurting. For my last race, I can't complain. It's been a good career.
"It's been the perfect last season and it was a dream come true to run in the NCAA Championships. Wearing the white uniform at a national meet has been such a dream for three years. I just wanted it every day and I finally got it."
For Bishop the national level race will have benefits for the young miler as he changes focus to the track and field season. It will also fuel his desire to compete on this level a few more times in his collegiate career.
"The conditions were pretty nice, compared to what we heard the weather was going to be like," said Bishop. "The footing on the course was really nice and it was just like another cross country race.
"It really was a learning experience. We got out fast and into a place where we wanted, and I think we were in 80th or 90th place. We tried to work from there, but we didn't obtain our goal of being All-American. I think we put together a nice race, especially for our first time here."
Players Mentioned
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
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