Cowboy Cross Country Seeking 10th Straight Big 12 Title

Saturday, October 28

ROUND ROCK, TX

10:00 AM

Oklahoma State University

Big 12 Championships

October 25, 2017 | Cowboy Cross Country & Track, Cowgirl Cross Country & Track

Meet Notes

The Basics
In Oklahoma State's first chance at hardware this postseason, the Cowboys have history on their side.
OSU has won the men's Big 12 cross country title nine years in-a-row and seek a tenth in Round Rock, coming into the event as the top-ranked Big 12 team.
The Cowgirls were runners-up a season ago, and hope to find their stride in time to win their first Big 12 title since 2015.

Follow the Meet
Fans can follow the action live on Twitter by following @run4okstate for updates. The event will be streamed on FloTrack.com and available to watch with a valid subscription. Final results will be published on www.okstate.com, along with a recap of OSU's day on the course.

Meet Schedule (All Times CT)
The 2017 Big 12 Cross Country Championships is scheduled to begin at 9:06 a.m., with the men's 8K, then the women's 6K run will follow at 10 a.m.

Last Time Out
Oklahoma State's second-consecutive meet win came against some talented competition with the likes of Penn State and Villanova toeing the line at the PSU Cross Country Course.
Senior Hassan Abdi finished the 5.2 mile course in 25:13 to earn him the individual title, defeating Villanova's Andrew Marston by three seconds.
Senior Luis Martinez earned a fifth-place finish, while junior Christian Liddell finished eighth overall. Freshman Ryan Smeeton (15th) and senior Noah Gade (16th) also helped secure the win for the Cowboys.
The Cowgirls finished sixth overall in a packed field that included No. 10 Penn State, No. 15 Villanova and conference-rival West Virginia.
The women saw production from senior Molly Sughroue, who placed ninth overall and improved her Cowboy Jamboree 6K time by more than a minute.
Essex, England, native Kaylee Dodd, who finished in 21:18 for the Cowgirls, had a strong showing by improving her 2017 6K personal best by nearly two full minutes.
Sophomore Kaytlyn Larson (36th), freshman Cheyenne Walden (48th) and freshman Ariane Ballner (51st) rounded out the top-five for the Cowgirls.

Coach Bobby Lockhart On the Meet
On his meet expectations
"The men are running for their tenth-straight championship. So, the expectation is definitely to win. We have a great women's team this year. They haven't performed how we had hoped so far, but they're really running into shape right now. We're running for the win, so that's kind of what we're looking for."

On who has stood out so far this season
"We're led by a couple seniors. Hassan Abdi and Sylvester Barus have kind of been our one-two guys. And then Luis Martinez and Noah Gade have also been there. So, those have kind of been the standouts and leaders for the men's team. As far as the women, Molly Sughroue has been our No. 1 female with the absence of Michelle (Magnani). But Michelle is looking very good, as is Kaylee Dodd. So, if I had to highlight a few athletes, I think it would be them."

On the pressure at the Big 12 Championships
"I mean, there's pressure any time you go into a championship race. The guys know what to expect though. They do expect to win. That's kind of been the idea the whole year. There are a few good teams, so we can't take our competition lightly. But, we expect to win."

Oklahoma State In The Rankings
Despite winning the Penn State National Open, the Oklahoma State Cowboy cross country squad comes in as the No. 10 team in the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association ranking.
The Pokes remain the top-ranked team in the Big 12 heading into the conference championships, but Iowa State isn't far behind at 23rd, with Texas directly behind them at No. 24.
The Cowgirls fell out of the top 30 following a sixth-place finish at the Penn State Open.
The Cowgirls weren't the only Big 12 women's team falling in the rankings, as Iowa State fell five spots to No. 23. OSU remains the second-highest ranked team in the conference and the No. 3 team in the Midwest Region behind Minnesota and Iowa State.

The Best In The Midwest
Under coach Dave Smith, the Cowboy cross country program has been one of the most consistent in the country.
The Pokes have won three national titles, nine Big 12 championships and finished in the top-10 at the NCAA Championships in nine of his 11 seasons as the head coach.
In addition to the trophies and accolades throughout the years, their consistency is best represented by their dominance of the Midwest Region which they have held for 58-straight weeks, dating back to 2011.
It is the longest streak in the NCAA, and it isn't even close.
Including the 2010 season, the Cowboys have been No. 1 in the Midwest for 67 of the past 68 weeks.
In the one week they weren't No. 1 in the Midwest, Oklahoma took the spot after breaking up OSU's Midwest Region title streak. But the Pokes made up for it by winning an NCAA title. It was Smith's first of three at OSU and the University's second of four.