Chesang Crowned Big 12 Champ
Oct. 30, 2004
TOPEKA, Kan. –
Jayhawk sophomore runner Benson Chesang proved that he is one of the top runners in the nation Saturday by winning the Big 12 Cross Country Championship held in Topeka, Kan. After battling the flu all week, Chesang bounced back to win the 8k race with a time of 24:07.43.
“I wanted to pull out around the 4k mark to make sure that I was running by myself, Chesang said. “It feels good to break the tradition of Colorado and win this event.” “I am elated for Benson, he had such a great race,” Kansas head coach Stanley Redwine said. “He had one goal in mind and nothing was going to stop him. I am excited about the win, I hope that it shows that Kansas cross country is on its way up.”
The Jayhawks finished fourth in the team standings. Freshman Colby Wissel continued his impressive first season with a 19th place finish in 25:11.54.
Colorado continued its cross country dominance, taking the team title.
On the women’s side, the Jayhawks finished 10th. Senior Megan Manthe was KU’s top finisher, placing 47th with a time of 23:20.61. Freshman Connie Abbott finished right behind Manthe in 48th place.
Colorado made it a clean sweep on the day by winning the women’s race as well. CU took the top three spots with Renee Metiviar winning the 6k race in a time of 20:28.05.
KU will be off next week as they prepare for the NCAA Midwest Regional Championship meet on November 13th, in Peoria, Ill.
