See, Buckeyes Dominate at All-Ohio Championship – Ohio State Buckeyes
10/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
DELAWARE, Ohio – Jeff See crossed the finish line in an 8k time of 26:07.9, leading the Ohio State men’s cross country team to a first-place finish at the 2009 All-Ohio Championships Friday afternoon.
The Buckeyes placed five runners in the Top 10, dominating two-time defending champion Malone 28-76 for their first title at the All-Ohio since 2006. It was the 11th win all-time for the Scarlet and Gray at the All-Ohio meet.
“I thought we ran a solid race today,” head coach Robert Gary said of his team’s performance. “As I’ve said before this is among the deepest and best conditioned teams I’ve had here at Ohio State and they proved that today.”
See beat out Cincinnati’s Eric Finan by more than 12 seconds for the individual crown. Finan led for most of the race, but See’s patented final kick was too much for the sophomore to overcome.
“It was a good win, not only for me but for the team,” See said after race. “We ran well despite the tough conditions on the course. I really like how our team is taking shape.”
Ohio State ran in a tight pack for most of the muddy 8000 meters, before See and sophomore Adam Green (3rd in 26:23.1) broke away to challenge Finan.
“I thought we grouped up very well,” Gary said. “The course is definitely one of the hardest I’ve run and rain made it even tougher – the fact that we stayed pretty close together for three miles was impressive, especially on such a hard course.”
A pair of freshmen followed closely behind Green – Julian Meyer finished sixth in 26:33.4, followed by Donny Roys, who took eighth in (26:44.3). Christopher Olinger was the fifth Buckeye to complete the course, as the senior claimed 10th in 26:51.9.
Rounding out scoring for the Scarlet and Gray were freshman Cory Leslie (27:40.3) and junior Chad Balyo (27:46.9). Sophomore Taylor Williams, senior Levi Fox and junior Skyler Schmitt did not compete in the varsity competition for the Buckeyes.
Ohio State hits the grass again Oct. 17 for the 2009 NCAA Pre-Nationals in Terre Haute, Ind.
