254 11 athletics "' - ~ -. . -, ,~~.: .. - , " 4 •• - ~ -, .' --,,~ - ..," .... ..... .i: . r-, .:;,~ _ - ~: ~"'" -; 'C.--~ . '--' ~~.'!. ---- -[IFINISH LINEa G~cross country national competitio Competing in the NCAA Division IT National Championship in Raleigh, N.C, Nov. 22, the Bison and Lady Bison cross country teams crossed their ultimate finish Jines. ' "From the beginning of the season, quali· fying for the national competition in Raleigh ranked high as one of our priorities:' coach Steve Guymon said. "Competition was fierce during the entire way, but in each meet. the teams never stopped competing." The Bisons, placing third, achieved Harding's highest male ranking in the national competition. The men's team third-place finish broke a school record set in 2001 when the team tied for fifth place. The Lady Bisons tied for fifth place at the national competition. Their finish dominated the previous high of 12th place in 1999 and provided the ladies with Harding's highest female ranking in a national competition. Along the course to nationals, both teams sup– ported one another during each race. "1 remember watching [senior] Sarah Rear don's face light up when the results for the guys' races were announced at nationals," sophomor Jessica Cornett said. "The entire ladies' team was sitting together on the bleachers, and we all started jumping and screaming." Senior Jacob Rotich placed second individu aUy at nationals for the Bisons. Completing th 10K race in 30 minutes and 39.9 seconds, Rotic set a Harding record by achieving the highes ranking and quickest time in a national competi tion for an individual male runner. Slightly trailing Rotich in the competition freshman Peter Kosgei finished third with a tim of 31:44.1. Kosgei became Harding'S fi.rst fresh· man All-American. For the Lady Bisons, senior Janet Kogo coaste into sixth place with a time of 21:05.5 during th ladies' 6K race. "The national championship was a perfect end to a perfect season,." Reardon said. -EmilySant
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