Cross Country Big12Sports.com

Big 12 Cross Country Coaches and Runners Garner USTFCCCA Recognition

The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association announced its selections for the NCAA Division I Regional Athletes and Coaches of the Year for the 2008 cross country season. The Big 12 had two student-athletes and four coaches across the conference honored.

Midwest Region Men’s Coach: Dave Smith, Oklahoma State University
The second-ranked Cowboys claimed their first Big 12 Conference men’s championship this season. Oklahoma State added the regional title two weeks later. Freshman German Fernandez won the Big 12 individual title and placed first in the open race at Pre-Nationals. Smith is in his third season as the head cross country coach in Stillwater.

Mountain Region Men’s Coach: Mark Wetmore, University of Colorado
The Buffaloes jumped six spots in the national rankings to No. 10 after their victory at the Mountain Regional. It was Colorado’s sixth straight regional title. Now in his 14th season as head coach, Wetmore is the only Division I cross country coach to win all four NCAA titles ? men’s and women’s team, men’s and women’s individual ? at the same school.

South Central Region Men’s Athlete: Shadrack Songok, Texas A&M University
Songok placed second at the Big 12 Conference Championships and won the South Central Region in his first season with the Aggies. Songok finished seventh at last year’s NCAA Cross Country Championships. He is a graduate student from Kabiyet, Kenya.

South Central Region Men’s Coach: Dan Waters, Texas A&M University
The 19th-ranked Aggies made history at the South Central Regional, snapping an Arkansas streak of 18 straight regional titles. The Aggies finished fourth at the Big 12 Conference meet. Waters came to Texas A&M in 2005 after overseeing the distance programs at Georgia and Texas Christian.

Mountain Region Women’s Athlete: Sally Kipyego, Texas Tech University
Considered one of the finest female distance runners in NCAA history, Kipyego kept up the pace this fall. She won her third straight Big 12 Conference and Mountain Region titles, and will attempt to become the first three-time NCAA women’s champion. A senior from Markwet, Kenya, Kipyego has won seven NCAA titles in indoor track, outdoor track and cross country.

Mountain Region Women’s Coach: Jon Murray, Texas Tech University
The ninth-ranked Lady Raiders won their first Big 12 Conference and Mountain Region championships this fall. Earlier in the season they won their second straight team championship at the Chile Pepper Festival. Texas Tech’s Sally Kipyego is the two-time defending NCAA individual champion. Murray is in his third season at Tech.