Bleak outlook for future of D2 athletics?

At least that was the cautionary note sounded when the Division II Championships and Legislative committees recently met. According to ncc.org, Metro State Athletics Director Joan McDermott was (paraphrased) saying "that while the desires of student-athletes to compete should be honored as much as possible, ADs across the country see a rapidly approaching need for major fiscal change." Some refer to the time that federal stimulus money runs out as "The Cliff." Uh-oh.

Cross country is an inexpensive sport. But schools look for blood from everybody, so expect travel budgets to get trimmed. This might be more evident when it comes to spring travel plans. This spring, a few meets determined many of the distance qualifiers. Maybe the qualifying times will come from more places -- and be slower.

Kirwa wins makes him fall cross favorite

Man of the meet: Daniel Kirwa of Harding didn't look good on paper, but resoundingly swept the longer distances at the NCAA II National Championships in San Angelo, Tex., last week.

He was the defending 10,000 champ, but his best times this season put him fifth-fastest in that race and 13th-fastest in the 5,000. Sixth at cross nats last year, the Harding athlete is my early favorite to take the individual race in Evansville this fall.

Performance of the meet: Adams States' Reuben Chebon-Mwei decisively dispatched last year's champ Daniel Maina (Abilene Christian) in the steeplechase. Chebon-Mwei's time of 8:47, which he got by powering off the final water barrier, was the best quality time posted in San Angelo.

Finish of the meet: Queens (N.C.) soph Michael Crouch skipped the 5,000 -- which he won indoors -- and edged two-time 1,500 champ Aaron Braun (Adams State) by .10 in a slow race, as these affairs typically are in a championship.

Runners-up of the meet: Including the 800, Adams State took three second-place finishes in San Angelo, easily scoring more points out of the distance races than any other school. It's hard to look past this squad as the early team favorite in Evansville.

Meet scorecard: I nailed only one winner (Chebon-Mwei) and picked seven of 12 top-three finishers (this doesn't include the 800). I completely whiffed on the 5000 (my winner finished ninth), but picked the top three (albeit not in the right order) in the 1,500 and got a Daily Double in the steeple.

Your meet thoughts: Send 'em my way.

Nats, day 2

Not a lot of info from last night's action in the media -- especially for the 10,000, as it happened after many newspaper deadlines. The San Angelo Standard & Times has picked up its "home cookin'" coverage. And according to the Harding sports info department, two-time 10k champ Daniel Kirwa hasn't lost at that distance in his two years in NCAA competition. Do I sense a four-peat?

Today's kind of a snoozer at nationals with 800 and 5,000 prelims on tap (gotta eliminate at least a few, right? Sigh...). I will check in on it later. 

Since it is springtime here in Montana -- meaning the ice is off the rivers, the grizzly bears have awakened and I don't have to plug in the car at night anymore -- my fambly and I are off camping this weekend. So it'll take me a couple of days to process the results.

Please go here for results (if it seems "stuck," switch browsers, if you can). Thanks to all who have commented; I'll leave the comments board open so you can update those not fortunate enough to be in San Angelo.

And I hope you'll check back to this site throughout the summer (a.k.a. base mileage period), as cross season draws nigh. This is a site devoted to small-college (D2) cross country and I hope to be in Evansville, Ind., for the big show this fall. 

And if you have any input or suggestions for the site, please fire me a message via the comments section.

Update: A look at the 5,000 qualifiers isn't too revealing, although it is interesting to note that defending steeplechase champ Daniel Maina (Abilene Christian) narrowly made the finale. And teammate Cleophas Tanui -- fourth in the 10k -- failed to advance. That might put a damper on ACU's national team title hopes.

Kirwa defends at D2 nats

Harding's Daniel Kirwa brought home a second consecutive 10,000 meter title Thursday night, as the first three finishers dipped under 30 minutes on an 80-degree night.

Kirwa topped Brian Medigovich (Adams State), who was second -- again.

Harding has dominated the long race, with its runners winning four of the past six years.

Just for the record, I had Kirwa third and Medigovich first. As I was not in San Angelo to enjoy an 80-degree evening, I'm not sure how it unfolded, but hope someone can fill me in. 

Preliminary surprise: Adams duo misses out on 1,500 finale

Adams States' Scott Kimball and Adam Graham didn't make the final of the metric mile. Although I'm not in San Angelo, Tex., it appears they must've fallen.

Not surprising: Micheal Wickman (Chico State) blasts a sub-57 second final lap to take the first heat. Notice has been served.

Update: All the favorites in the steeplechase cruised, although I was bummed to see the Wayne State (Neb.) duo trimmed to one.

And is it just me, or does it seem a little futile to eliminate only 9 out of 33 (in the 1,500 and steeple)? Why not let more in to start with?

An 800 favorite

Metro State of Colorado's first-ever national track champion is profiled in this denverpost.com piece.
I especially like the line about winning a track title for a school that doesn't have a track. Though I didn't pick the 800m, I'd certainly like to see Anthony Luna win.
Thanks to Luna and others, Colorado distance runnning is much more interesting than it was a couple of decades ago: Aside from Colorado, Adams State and Western State, no one else was really on the map. But it's great to see Colorado Mines and Metro State make some noise.
And it's important to note Luna has a very capable coach in Pete Julian, although he needs to quit griping about the nationality of athletes. I really don't think D2 has a budget to recruit in the Rift Valley, Pete. (There were two Julians, right? One at Oregon and another at Portland?)
As I write this, we're a few hours away from the first D2 final. Should be a dandy.

5,000 fave? Donnan of Western State

As I look back on my picks, I realize I have picked an Adams State runner to win every distance event. Until now. Aaron Braun is the best runner in the meet, hands down. But I like Western State's Iain Donnan over 5,000 meters. The junior Mountaineer is focussing exclusively (like teammate Tyler Pennel) on the distance, while Braun will have only 2 1/2 hours' rest. Of course, if anyone can do it, it would be Braun. It's too bad Micheal Crouch (Queens, N.C.) didn't choose this race, which would've been his best chance to win a national title.

1. Iain Donnan (Western State)
   
2. Amos Sang (Abilene Christian)
   
3. Aaron Braun (Adams State)
   

All-Americans: Marko Cheseto (Alaska-Anchorage), Luke Cragg (Adams State), Pennel, Florian Theophile (Adams State)

Remember, the first final is the men's 10,000 meters tomorrow night. At that time, I'll ignore my prognostications and pretend I knew the winner all along! 

Steeplechase: Chebon-Mwei will win again

Daniel Maina (Abilene Christian) is last year's champ. Reuben Chebon-Mwei (Adams State) outpaced him at this year's Penn Relays. I figure the men's steeplechase title should come down to these two -- and Chebon-Mwei gets the nod, mostly based on the Penn performance (both will likely run the 5,000 final 3 1/2 hours later). But anything can happen, and that's where Alaska-Anchorage's David Kiplagat comes in.

1. Reuben Chebon-Mwei (Adams State)

2. Daniel Maina (Abilene Christian)

3. David Kiplagat (Alaska-Anchorage)

All-Americans: Loren Ahonen (Western State); Nate Preston (Wayne State, Neb.); Matt Schneider (Wayne State, Neb.)

Adams State's Medigovich will win the 10,000

OK, so I'm starting with the 10,000, which is the first distance final of the D2 national championships in San Angelo, Tex.

In many ways, this race has the most wide-open field. No one has run a stratospheric time (although Chris Clark of California (Pa.) has a sterling best time), and most of the top contenders are doubling in the 5,000. But, hey, if I'm winning the 10k with eight laps to go, who cares about my second event.

I think Medigovich will take it because he's got the best finishing speed of the bunch. I think.

So, without further ado, the top three:

1. Brian Medigovich (Adams State)
   
2. Chris Clark (California, Pa.)
   
3. Daniel Kirwa (Harding)
   

All-Americans: Marko Cheseto (Alaska-Anchorage); Luke Cragg (Adams State); Amos Sang (Abilene Christian); Jeff Weiss (Slippery Rock); Ben Zywicki (Colorado Mines).

My top storylines from San Angelo

Here's what I'm looking forward to at D2 nationals in San Angelo, Tex., starting Thursday:

• Aaron Braun (Adams State) and his attempt to pull of a 1,500/5,000 double
• Michael Crouch (Queens, N.C.) in the 1,500, when I assumed he would be running the 5,000. This is the indoor 5,000 champ,, you know
  
• Another chapter of the Chebon-Mwei vs. Maina battle over barriers. Maina is the defending outdoor steeplechase champ; Chebon-Mwei got the better of him at Penn Relays.
  
• A wide-open 10,000.
  
• Heat and humidty. Or not: The forecast is for low 80s and chance of thunderstorms.
  

Next up: Who will win the 1,500

Who'll win D2 nats?

I'll take my shot at it in the coming days. In order to limit my potential embarassment, I'll pick the top three (in order) in the 1,500, Steeplechase, 5,000 and 10,000. (Oh, to cover NAIA athletes: I could pick the 5k racewalk, 4x800 relay and marathon!)

My picks will be based on:

• Men's outdoor accepted list (I've got to assume whoever is on it, is runnin')
• Head-to-head competition, when applicable
  
• Indoor nationals results
  
• Recorded performance times
  
• Intangibles.
  

It all starts for distance running-lovers at 5:55 p.m. CDT Thursday with the 1,500 prelims. Please share your insights!

Sweep-stakes

There is something cool when you see a school sweep an event. And why does it NOT surprise me when one school dominates a distance race. Steeplechase, with its peculiar skills, is a good example. In their respective D2 conference meets last weekend, these four schools turned in these four performances:
Chico State: 1-2-3
Grand Valley State: 1-2-4
Southern Indiana: 1-2
Emporia State: 2-4-5.
In an individual sport like track and field, I like the idea of a group of guys willing each other to perform.

Wayne State waders

It escaped my notice initially, but Wayne State (Neb. not Mich.) had two fine efforts from its steeplechase crew at Drake Relays recently.

Nate Preston and Matt Schneider -- both in-state recruits -- dipped just below the D2 auto qualifying mark of 9:09.

That means that Wayne State of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference has more auto steeple qualifiers than any other school.

Why Michael Crouch skipped Penn Relays

'Cause he wants to run faster, it appears. 

The Queens (N.C.) sophomore has already run a school-record 13:46 this season at Stanford, which is where he (and others) will be again this weekend for the Peyton Jordan Cardinal Invitational. Adams State's Aaron Braun, already owner of a school-record 13:36, will run the 1,500. And ASC will send a pair of runners (Luke Cragg and Brian Medigovich) for the 10,000m.

Just how fast is the Peyton Jordan?

• 32 men went sub-14 minutes in the 5,000 meters last year
  
• The B heat of the 10k went in 28:15
  
• Chico State's Scott Bauhs ran D2's fastest-ever 10k at 27:48.

It all goes down Saturday evening.

Race of the week: Penn Relays steeplechase

As alluded to below, most D2 distance squads appear to be looking for individual efforts at the country's two pre-eminent track and field relays. (This could change with late entries, maybe?)

At Drake (find the start list here), Harding has James Cheriuyot and D. Dirawa signed up for the 10,000, while Philip Biwott is entered in the 5,000. (Harding didn't get much out of Mt. SAC, as Julius Kosegei was a 5,000m DNF and Artek Kern was a DNS.) 

In Philly, indoor 5,000m champ Micheal Crouch of Queens (N.C.) is entered in the both long races. He can't do both, though, as those start just hours apart. Also watch for Edinboro's Ben Hahn in the 5k.

With the focus on fast relay squads, Drake and Penn don't typically produce fast long-distance races. But the race of the weekend -- from a D2 distance perspective, natch -- is the Penn Relays steeplechase.

Scheduled to go off at 7:30 p.m. EDT Thursday, the event should be a small college showdown between Daniel Maina of Abilene Christian ('08 D2 champ and last year's Penn winner in 8:40), Adams State's Reuben Chbon-Mwei ('08 D2 runner-up) and D3 stud Peter Kosgei of Hamilton (here's his own Web page).

On paper, Maina looks like the guy to beat...

4.23 update: Kern (Harding) will run the 10k at Drake

Relays?

The 100th Drake Relays (check out a cool history here) and the "Penn Relay Carnival" get underway this week. 

Mankato State will field 4 x 1600m and 4x 800m squads at Drake, but for D2 distance runners, it's more about individual efforts, according to the start lists I've seen.

Looking at the latest D2 performance list (which, incidentally, has some big omissions, like some sub-14 minute performances by Adams State), it's too bad Alaska-Anchorage couldn't get a 4x800m squad out to Philly. Looks like they have three sub 1:52 performers, with a 3:50 performer (Alfred Kangogo) as a possible fourth leg? That's a long flight, though.

Next: Penn, Drake

Contrary to what you may have read here yesterday (egg on thy face!), Penn and Drake relays are on tap this week. We'll see who shows up where...

Fast 5s

Between the three schools, Abilene Christian (1), Adams State (4!), and Western State (2) put seven runners under 14 minutes in the various 5000m races at Mt. SAC Relays. (Adams State nearly had a fifth at 14:05). Nice work.

The small-school effort of the night might have been the 13:33 by Azusa Pacific's Aron Rono. Of course, if your name is Rono, you'd better be fast.

Not sure what D2 squads might be off to Drake and Penn, but I'll keep track.