Oct. 31, 2011

Complete Men's Results | Complete Men's Results | Complete Women's Results | Complete Women's Results

Interview with Coach Gulley

HOUSTON - The University of Tulsa men's cross country team repeated as Conference USA Champions Monday at the Wildcat Golf Club. This is the third time in the last four years the TU men claimed the conference crown.

The women fell two points shy of having both teams win back-to-back titles, as they took second to SMU.

MEN
The No. 27-ranked men won the 8K event with 35 points, 13 ahead of second-place UTEP. Houston finished third with 71 points, and Rice (108) and Marshall (133) rounded out the top five.

"There was a lot of pressure for the guys because they have been running well this season," Tulsa Head Coach Steve Gulley said. "UTEP has always run well at this meet, so it was relief to get it off their back. It was important for them to win back-to-back titles."

The top three individuals were Justice Chirchir of UTEP (23:39.0), Elkana Rotich of UTEP (23:51.1) and Wesley Ruttoh of Houston (23:55.3).

Tulsa fell in line after those three and was able to secure six of the top-11 positions. Senior Carl Stones led the way with his fourth-place finish (24:01.5), while freshman Andrew Heyes was right behind his teammate in fifth (24:02.6).

Junior Geraint Davies placed seventh (24:10.0), senior Tom Marshall was ninth (24:13.3) and fellow senior Paulo Pinheiro rounded out the team score in 10th (24:15.6).

Freshman Dennis Hodapp was 11th (24:18.5), and all of TU's top six runners clocked personal bests.

Junior Sam Masters finished 13th (24:35.3), junior Mitch Johnson was 17th (24:55.0) and senior Bill Martin was 19th in a personal-best time of 25:15.7.

Stones, Heyes and Davies were named to the all-Conference USA First Team. Marshall, Pinheiro, Hodapp and Masters all landed on the all-Conference USA Second Team. Johnson and Martin found spots on the all-Conference USA Third Team.

This was the second-straight year Tulsa had all nine runners earn all-conference accolades.

Stones was named to the all-conference team for the fourth-straight year (Third Team in 2008 and 2009, First Team in 2010). Five members of the squad earned all-conference honors for the second-straight year, and those were Davies (Second Team in 2010), Marshall (Second Team in 2010), Pinheiro (Third Team in 2010), Masters (Second Team in 2010), and Johnson (Second Team in 2010).

"We're headed in the right direction, and I'm pleased with how we performed today," Gulley said. "The guys understand the importance of the conference meet and what it means to The University of Tulsa."

MEN'S TEAM RESULTS
1.	TULSA (35)
2.	UTEP (48)
3.	Houston (71)
4.	Rice (108)
5.	Marshall (133)
6.	Memphis (135)
7.	East Carolina (191)
8.	Tulane (228)
MEN'S INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (out of 62 runners)
1.	Carl Stones (4th)	24:01.5 (First Team All-Conference USA)
2.	Andrew Heyes (5th)	24:02.6 (First Team All-Conference USA)
3.	Geraint Davies (7th)	24:10.0 (First Team All-Conference USA)
4.	Tom Marshall (9th)	24:13.3 (Second Team All-Conference USA)
5.	Paulo Pinheiro (10th)	24:15.6 (Second Team All-Conference USA)
6.	Dennis Hodapp (11th)	24:18.5 (Second Team All-Conference USA)
7.	Sam Masters (13th)	24:35.3 (Second Team All-Conference USA)
8.	Mitch Johnson (17th)	24:55.0 (Third Team All-Conference USA)
9.	Bill Martin (19th)	25:15.7 (Third Team All-Conference USA)
2011 C-USA Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year - Steve Gulley, Tulsa

WOMEN
The Golden Hurricane fell two points shy of repeating as conference champs, but the team was still able to land five members of the squad on all-conference teams.

SMU took top honors with 57 points, while Tulsa ended with 59 points. Rice (83), East Carolina (86) and UTEP (162) rounded out the top five.

"The girls did everything I asked them, but they just couldn't finish," Gulley said. "It's a heartbreaker for sure, but I was proud of how they performed. If you asked me back in July if we were going to be in position to win Conference USA, I would have said no. We did a great a job, and SMU just beat us."

Senior Paula Whitingpaced Tulsa with her third-place finish. She recorded a mark of 16:43.6, and she finished behind individual champion Silje Fjortoft of SMU (16:06.8) and Risper Kimaiyo of UTEP (16:14.7).

Junior Ashley Scott finished eighth in a personal-best time of 17:33.5. Fellow junior Jaclyn Rollins was 11th in 17:37.0, and sophomore Josie Wilcox clocked a personal-best mark of 17:59.5 to finish 18th. Freshman Lauren Colletterounded out the team score, as she finished 19th in a PR of 18:00.0.

Junior Sarah Macpherson finished 24th (18:08.4), freshman Natasha Cockram placed 26th (PR of 18:15.9), junior Erin Huddleston finished 32nd (18:32.5) and freshman Brandi Kriegplaced 52nd (PR of 19:14.1).

Whiting earned a spot on the all-Conference USA First Team for the second-straight year. She was also a member of the Second Team in 2009.

Scott and Rollins were both named to the all-C-USA Second Team. This is the second all-conference honor for Scott (Third Team in 2010) and the third for Rollins (Third Team in 2009, Second Team in 2010).

Wilcox and Collette earned their first-career honors.

Next up for the Golden Hurricane will be the NCAA Midwest Regional at 10 a.m. Nov. 12 in DeKalb, Ill.

WOMEN'S TEAM RESULTS
1.	SMU (57)
2.	TULSA (59)
3.	Rice (83)
4.	East Carolina (86)
5.	UTEP (162)
6.	UAB (167)
7.	Memphis (208)
8.	Houston (219)
9.	Tulane (236)
10.	UCF (258)
11.	Southern Miss (271)
12.	Marshall (281)
WOMEN'S INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (out of 92 runners)
1.	Paula Whiting (3rd)	16:43.6 (First Team All-Conference USA)
2.	Ashley Scott (8th)	17:33.5 (Second Team All-Conference USA)
3.	Jaclyn Rollins (11th)	17:37.0 (Second Team All-Conference USA)
4.	Josie Wilcox (18th)	17:59.5 (Third Team All-Conference USA)
5.	Lauren Collette (19th)	18:00.0 (Third Team All-Conference USA)
6.	Sarah Macpherson (24th)	18:08.4
7.	Natasha Cockram (26th)	18:15.9
8.	Erin Huddleston (32nd)	18:32.5
9.	Brandi Krieg (52nd)	19:14.1
2011 C-USA Women's Cross Country Freshman of the Year - Lauren Collette, Tulsa