Miners Win Pre-National Meet

UTEP beats out defending national champions Colorado to win white race.

Oct. 13, 2007

The UTEP men's cross country made a statement today as it defeated defending national champions Colorado to win the white race at the Pre-National meet in Terre Haute, Ind. The meet which featured 26 of the top 30 teams in the nation, was held at the LaVern Gibson course, home to the 2007 NCAA championship meet.

"I've never had such a competition in all the years I've been here as head coach," cross country coach Paul Ereng said. "It was a great meet and we accomplished what we intended. It is a step closer to our big goal."

UTEP finished the meet with 129 points, followed by Colorado with 155 points and North Carolina State with 183 points. The Miners, who did not qualify for the national meet in 2006 as a team, look to spring from today's meet into the national spotlight.

Senior Stephen Samoei led the Miners, finishing a strong eighth place with a time of 23:29.

Dominic Tanui, Nicodemus Ng'etich and Japheth Ng'ojoy crossed the finish line almost simultaneously, ending the race in 36th through 38th place, respectively. Tanui finished with a time of 23:57, followed by Ng'etich and Ng'ojoy who both finished four-tenths of a second behind with a time of 23:57.4.

"It really helped us identify the things we need to improve on. It shows where we need to be," Ereng said. "It is an indication to us and everyone else that we are just as good as anyone in the country. Now, they will be coming for us."

"This is really a positive step for us. It showed our team that hard work pays off. We have been working hard since our last meet (at Oregon) and reaped the rewards of that hard work today. Our goal

Rounding out the UTEP runners was Aggrey Chirchir, who finished with a time of 23:44.

The Miners, who are currently ranked 21st in the country, will be hosting the conference championships Oct. 27 at the Santa Teresa Country Club in Santa Teresa, N.M.