Kansas Cross Country Concludes Season at NCAA Midwest Regionals

Nov. 12, 2011

Men’s Results | Women’s Results

NCAA Midwest Region Championships NIU North 40 // DeKalb, Ill.

Men’s Top-Five Teams (25 Total) Team Points Avg/Time 1. Oklahoma State 42 31:29.06 2. Oklahoma 45 31:30.86 3. Tulsa 120 31:53.35 4. Minnesota 129 31:56.74 5. Illinois 157 32:07.92 8. Kansas 219 32:29.99 Kansas Men’s Results Name Year Time 32. Austin Bussing SR 32:07.40 34. Zach Zarda JR 32:12.17 38. Josh Baden JR 32:16.15 58. Josh Munsch SO 32:49.11 59. Reid Buchanan FR 32:50.10 94. Evan Landes FR 33:51.04 146. James Wilson FR 35:15.91 Women’s Top-Five Teams (28 Total) Team Points Avg/Time 1. Iowa State 64 21:17.50 2. Oklahoma State 119 21:46.33 3. Minnesota 136 21:48.98 4. Iowa 146 21:53.22 5. Northwestern 204 22:08.28 9. Kansas 255 22:17.40 Kansas Women’s Results Name Year Time 20. Rebeka Stowe SR 21:38.86 21. Kara Windisch SR 21:39.61 64. Tessa Turcotte JR 22:38.68 72. Cori Christensen SR 22:42.47 78. Kyra Kilwein JR 22:47.34 97. Liza Tauscher FR 23:01.08 111. Brittany Tate SO 23:13.61

DeKalb, Ill. – Led by top-35 performances from Rebeka Stowe, Kara Windisch, Austin Bussing and Zach Zarda, the Kansas men’s and women’s cross country teams finished eighth and ninth, respectively, at the NCAA Midwest Regional Saturday afternoon at the NIU North Course.

“I think we’re better than what we showed today,” Assistant Coach Michael Whittlesey said following the race. “It’s great to see the senior Kara (Windisch) go out on probably her best collegiate race and end things on a high note. It’s tough though, to know there’s still another cross country race this season that we won’t be at.”

Stowe, who hails from Olathe, Kan., finished 20^th overall (21:38.86) giving the senior her second-consecutive top-20 finish at the Midwest Regional meet. Fellow senior Windisch was not far behind, finishing 21^st (21:39.61) and notching the highest regional finish of the Overland Park, Kan., native’s career. For finishing in the top 25, the duo earned All-Region honors, marking just the second-time in the Stanley Redwine era two KU women were members of the All-Region team.

“We (Stowe and Windisch) have been working really hard, so it’s great to see that anyone can do it if they really work at it,” Windisch said. “The key for me was getting out fast and I think I did really well with that today. I was working with Stowe and just trying to keep up with her as long as I could and it worked out well for me.”

Bussing, a senior out of Houston, Texas, concluded his outstanding KU cross country career with a 32^nd-place finish (32:07.40) to lead the KU men. The finish marked the third-consecutive race Bussing has led his team this year and a nearly 50-place improvement from his finish at last year’s Regional race.

“The men got out in a really good position at the start,” explained Whittlesey. “The pace was comfortable and it didn’t really pick up until the second half of the race. I thought our pack did a really good job moving along in the middle part of the race, too.”

On the women’s side, KU’s next three finishers after Stowe and Windisch were junior Tessa Turcotte (22:38.68), who placed 64^th, senior Cori Christensen (22:42.47), who crossed the finish line in 72^nd and junior Kyra Kilwein (22:47.34), coming in 78^th. The women’s team would go on to score 255 points to finish ninth overall in the team standings.

For the men, junior Zach Zarda (32:12.17) was KU’s No. 2 finisher, coming in at 34^th. Fellow junior Josh Baden (32:16.15), who stuck with the overall leaders for much of the race, would end his day in 38^th. The men’s team saw three runners in the top-40 of the Regional meet for the first time since 2006.

Sophomore Josh Munsch (32:49.11) and freshman Reid Buchanan (32:50.10) would round out the men’s scoring with a 58^th-place and 59^th-place finish, respectively. The team would eventually finish eighth in the team standings with 219 points.

Oklahoma State took the regional team title, with Oklahoma also advancing to the NCAA Championships with a runner-up finish. The Iowa State women advanced to Terre Haute after earning the team championship at the NIU North 40 Course. Oklahoma State finished second in the women’s race and will join their Big 12 brethren, the Cyclones, at the NCAA Championships on Nov. 21.

The NCAA Midwest Regional completes the 2011 season for Kansas cross country. The Jayhawk runners will now join their fellow track and field athletes at practice next week to begin preparing for the upcoming indoor season.

“We can do a lot of damage on the indoor track this year,” concluded Whittlesey. “There’s an awful lot of talent with our middle distance and distance runners, so we just have to believe that we can get to the level I know we’re capable of. It should be a fun season on the track.”