Abdi Earns Big 12 Individual Champion Title

Saturday, October 28

ROUND ROCK, TX

10:00 AM

Oklahoma State University

Big 12 Championships

Hassan Abdi and Luis Martinez finished first and second at the Big 12 Championship.

October 28, 2017 | Cowboy Cross Country & Track, Cowgirl Cross Country & Track

ROUND ROCK, Texas — Oklahoma State senior Hassan Abdi was the Big 12 individual champion at the Big 12 Cross Country Championship race on Saturday.

The No. 10 Cowboys scored 44 points to finish third overall behind Iowa State (40) and Texas (41). Along with Abdi's individual crown, another Cowboy saw the podium with Luis Martinez coming in second overall.

The race remained a tight pack through 5K, but after that mark became a mix of Iowa State, Texas and OSU.

"It was a disappointing day," head coach Dave Smith said. "All along on the men's side, we knew it would be tough. But I think it was there. At the end of the day, we were in the race and we had a chance to win it."

Abdi finished No. 1 after finishing third last year, despite again losing his shoe like last year's race, causing him to fall behind the lead pack.

"I didn't try to catch them all at once like last year," Abdi said. "I still had two laps to go from then on, so I tried to slowly catch up."

Redshirt-freshman Ryan Smeeton had a big day for the Cowboys in his first conference meet, crossing the line in 24:17.8 and finishing ninth overall for his first All-Big 12 honor.

"We lost this race by a couple seconds here or there today," Smith said.

Noah Gade (15^th) and Sylvester Barus (17^th) completed the Cowboy top-five, making four out of the five earning All-Big 12 honors.

"The natural reaction is to panic a little bit," Smith said. "But when you panic you make mistakes. I think the better plan is to probably step back and realize we have 13 days to get rested and recovered for the next race."

The Cowgirls finished runners-up with 89 points. The finish makes the Cowgirls Big 12 runners-up in back-to-back years.

The women again saw production from senior Molly Sughroue, who finished ninth overall in 20:35, which was a personal best for her.

"It feels really good," Sughroue said. "It doesn't happen a lot in cross country, so it always means a lot. The courses are so different, but it felt really good to finish and see the clock and see it was a fast time for me. So, I really can't be too upset."

The Cowgirls saw also good results from an unexpected place in freshman Cheyenne Walden. Walden was the women's second-highest finisher, finishing the 6K race in 20:50, good enough for 15^th overall.

The Cowgirl top-five was rounded out by Kaytlyn Larson (17^th) Gintare Zenkeviciute (20^th) and freshman Sinclaire Johnson (28^th)

The Iowa State women's team took home the title for a second-consecutive year.

Up next for the Cowboys is a chance to defend their Midwest Regional title streaks. The men are looking for their seventh-straight title and the women are hunting for their second victory in three years.

The Midwest Regional will be held in 13 days on Nov. 10 in Ames, Iowa at the Iowa State cross country course.

Big 12 Championships | Oct. 28, 2017 | Round Rock, Texas

Men's Individual Results

1. Hassan Abdi – 24:11.2
2. Luis Martinez – 24:12.4
9. Ryan Smeeton – 24:17.8
15. Noah Gade – 24:29.6
17. Sylvester Barus – 24:31.9
24. Matthew Fayers – 24:43.5
28. Christian Liddell – 24:46.8
33. Nic Butts – 24:52.7
52. Alec Haines – 25:22.2
56. Sukhi Khosla – 25:26.4

Women's Individual Results

9. Molly Sughroue – 20:35.0
15. Cheyenne Walden – 20:50.0
17. Kaytlyn Larson – 20:54.7
20. Gintare Zenkeviciute – 20:59.9
28. Sinclaire Johnson – 21:12.3
34. Kaylee Dodd – 21:25.5
41. Taylor Somers – 21:37.5
45. Ariane Ballner – 21:47.8
46. Michelle Magnani – 21:49.1
56. Jennifer Celis – 22:09.5

Men's Team

1. Iowa State – 40
2. Texas – 41
3. Oklahoma State – 44
4. Kansas State – 142
5. Texas Tech – 151
6. Baylor – 172
7. Kansas – 189
8. Oklahoma – 194
9. TCU – 295

Women's Team

1. Iowa State – 49
2. Oklahoma State – 89
3. Texas – 90
4. West Virginia – 115
5. Baylor – 117
6. Kansas – 147
7. Oklahoma – 179
8. Texas Tech – 196
9. Kansas State – 206
10. TCU - 238