TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -
Oklahoma State junior David Jankowski led the Cowboy cross country team to a top-ten finish at the NCAA Pre-National Meet in Terre Haute, Ind. on Saturday. The Idaho Falls, Id. native, running in his first race since returning from an injury, finished 17th to lead the Pokes to eighth-place in the event.
Jankowski, who had been hampered by tendonitis for most of the season, finished with a time of 24:03 in the race hosted by Indiana State.
Sophomore Alejandro Ruiz finished with a time of 24:32 for the Pokes and redshirt freshman Daniel Watts finished with a time of 24:36. Junior Brian Ehlis and senior Michael Breshears rounded out the top five for the Cowboys. Ehlis finished with a time of 24:37 and Breshears ran a time of 24:52. Senior David Pomies finished with a time of 25:14 and redshirt freshman Peter Doroshuk finished with a time of 25:22.
"David ran a fantastic race today," said Cowboy head coach Dave Smith. "To run the way he did in his first race of the season is very impressive. (Alejandro) Ruiz, (Daniel) Watts, (Brian) Ehlis and (Michael) Breshears also ran good races. They came out and did exactly what we asked them to do. I felt like Matt (Barnes-Smith) was very good in his race as well."
"We gear our training towards the end of the season. We always seem to run better in 10k races and the only two 10k races we run in are at the regional meet and the NCAA Championships. If we keep at the pace we are going and keep improving the way we have been, we will be a top-ten team at the national meet."
Defending Big 12 Champion Colorado captured first-place honors in the event. Florida State and North Carolina State finished second and third, respectively. The University of California-Santa Barbara and Georgetown rounded out the top five. Providence and Louisville finished sixth and seventh, respectively. Arizona finished ninth behind OSU and Butler finished tenth.
The Pokes will resume action in two weeks when they travel to Lawrence, Kan., for the Big 12 Championships.