University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
NCAA Championships (10K)
CROSS COUNTRY VOLS POST BEST NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP FINISH SINCE 1998
November 21, 2005 | Cross Country
Nov. 21, 2005
Tennessee's 30th-ranked cross country team concluded its season on a high note Monday, finishing 28th with 604 points in the NCAA championship in Terre Haute, Ind. As he has done all season, senior co-captain Zach Sabatino led the Volunteers with his 23rd-place, 30-minute, 8.0-second effort in a 253-runner field on the 10K LaVern Gibson Championship Course.
Tennessee notched its best cross country team performance at the NCAA meet since 1998, when the Vols finished tied for 21st under the direction of head coach George Watts. Sabatino's 23rd-place finish marked the best individual NCAA race by a Volunteer since Knoxville's Tony Cosey, a future Olympian, took seventh in 1995.
"We put ourselves in a little bit of a hole early on, as we've had a tendency to do this year, but the guys fought through it," Watts said. "We made up about 100 points from the 5K mark to the end of the race and made up 75 points over the last 2K. We improved three places from the last time we ran in the NCAA championship. We finished two spots better than our pre-meet ranking.
Wisconsin dominated the 31-team field, scoring 37 points to earn the NCAA title. SEC rival Arkansas was second with 105 points. Notre Dame earned bronze with 178 points. Finishing 28th, Tennessee snuck past a couple of teams, 27th-ranked American and 29th-ranked Indiana, the 30th-ranked Vols weren't expected to defeat. Individually, Wisconsin's Simon Bairu won the national title with a 29:15.9 clocking. Richard Kiplagat of Iona finished runner-up with a time of 29:21.9. Wisconsin's Chris Solinsky also helped the Badgers lock up the team title by crossing third in 29:27.8.
Cross country training begins in the suffocating heat of summer with hopes of finishing the season on a frigid field in late fall. Such was the case Monday, as temperatures hovered around 40 degrees under most sunny skies. A wind from the west made the temperature feel more like the mid 30s as the distance kings ticked off the 10,000 meters pace by pace.
"I can't say enough about Zach and his performance, not only today but throughout the season," Watts said. "He has run strong all season long, and today was a culmination of a very successful senior cross country season. He does all the little things needed to perform at the highest level. Though there have been many great ones, we haven't had many runners at Tennessee who can match Zach's dedication, desire and motivation to be the best he can possibly be.
Sabatino's 23rd-place finish, 19th when adjusted for team scoring, in 30:08.0 put the bookend on an All-SEC, All-Region and, most importantly, All-America season. Sabatino becomes Tennessee's first cross country All-America honoree since Doug Ellington in 1998. Sitting out the first race of the season, Sabatino led the Vols in each of the subsequent six meets, losing to only 39 runners while defeating 989 competitors.
"(On earning All-America honors) It's definitely a monkey off my back to accomplish my goal," Sabatino said. "The season's not over with an important indoor and outdoor (track) season left in this campaign. (On the conditions) It was a little slow and a little chilly, but really it was pretty good weather.
Farragut native Andy Baksa finished 139th, 107th when adjusted for team scoring, with a time of 31:21.1 in his final NCAA cross country meet. Baksa ran in all seven of Tennessee's 2005 meets and scored in six. Chris Platt placed 170th, 137th when adjusted for team scoring, with a time of 31:37.3. Platt landed in Tennessee's scoring five in each of the three championship races -- SEC, South Region and NCAA. Knoxville West grad Dusty Miller finished 190th, 155th when adjusted for team scoring, with a time of 31:49.6. Miller improved when it counted, as the junior finished fourth in the Vol pack, his best finish since the Sept. 16 Tennessee Invitational. Ben Lukowski wrapped up Tennessee scoring with his 223rd finish, 186th when adjusted for team scoring, in 32:16.6. The dependable Lukowski ran in and scored in Tennessee's last six meets, joining Sabatino as the only two Vols to pull off the feat.
Tennessee's spread between its top-five scoring runners measured 2:08.6, the widest margin of the season by about four seconds. While the spread was wider than Watts desired, Tennessee's second through fifth runners registered significant improvement since last season. Sabatino's superb senior season simply made it difficult for them to keep pace.
"We brought six guys who have a chance to be in this race next year," Watts said. "We gained tremendous experience in this race and will better know what to expect next year. Although we lose Zach and Andy, I believe next year's team can be even better.
Matt Piccarello finished 232nd in 32:25.0. Tyler DeVault crossed 249th with a time of 33:42.2. Jeff Day made the trip as the alternate but was not pressed into service.
Meeting its preseason goal, Tennessee improved its team finish in each of the three championship meets -- SEC, South Regional and NCAA -- and added a new face to the Vols' list of All-America honorees. The Volunteers turn their focus to finishing the fall semester on a strong note academically during the next three weeks before exams conclude the term.
