National Club Cross Country Champs
SEATTLE – (December 10, 2011) – Defending team champion McMillan Elite (Flagstaff, Ariz.) successfully defended their Open men’s title, while adidas/Team Rogue Elite (Austin, Texas) took the women’s Open team title Saturday at the 2011 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships at Jefferson Park in Seattle.
An event record 1,226 athletes competed at the 13th edition, which featured America’s top post-collegiate club teams from across the United States vying for top honors and bragging rights as the nation’s top cross country team. The championships offered a total prize purse of $30,000, with $25,000 going to the top open teams.
The day of racing began with the Masters women’s 6K where Club Northwest’s Gwen Lapham scored a runner-up finish to lead the host club as they successfully defended their 40+ team title. Running unattached, Chris Kimbrough (Austin, Texas) took the individual Masters title, running 22 minutes, 12 seconds to finish nine seconds up on Lapham.
The Masters women’s 6K also saw the Impala Racing Team take the 50+ team title as the Boulder Road Runners scored victories in the 60+ and 70+ team divisions.
The Masters men’s 10K boasted the largest field of the day with 394 entrants.
Malcolm Campbell took the top individual honors in 32:13, as he led the Atlanta Track Club to the men’s 40+ team title.
The host Club Northwest successfully defended their 50+ team title and the Atlanta Track Club earned the top team honors in the 60+ division and the Boulder Road Runners won the 70+ and 80+ team titles.
In the Open women’s 6K, adidas/Team Rogue Elite won their first ever team title over two-time team champions Boulder Running Company and Brie Felnagle (Tacoma, Wash.) took the individual title, running 19:54 for a four-second win over NCAA Division II Cross Country champion Neely Spence (Shippensburg, Pa.) with Club NW’s Katie Follett third (19:59).
The Open men’s 10K saw Jonathan Grey of Team USA Minnesota take command of the race at 6K, quickly opening a 20 meter lead over a field that included defending individual champion Aaron Braun and World Championships 1500 meter bronze medalist Matt Centrowitz (Eugene, Ore.).
Grey cruised to the individual title in 29:38 for a 10 second win over Braun who edged Phillip Reid of the ASICS Aggies as they finished in the same time of 29:48, while Centrowitz took fourth in 29:50. Braun had two teammates in the top 12 – Brett Gotcher, 6th (29:55) and Scott Smith, 12th (30:03) to help secure the team title.
13th USATF National Club Cross Country Championships
Seattle, WA, Saturday, December 10, 2011
MEN – 10K
1) Jonathan Grey (MN), 29:38
2) Aaron Braun (AZ), 29:48
3) Phillip Reid (CA), 29:48
4) Matt Centrowitz (OR), 29:50
5) Trevor Dunbar (AK), 29:51
MEN’S TEAM
1) McMillan Elite, 72 points, $5000
2) Boulder Running Company, 80, $3000
3) ASICS Aggie Running Club, 106, $2000
4) New York Athletic Club, 137, $1500
5) Boston Athletic Association, 179, $1000
WOMEN – 6K
1) Brie Felnagle (WA), 19:54
2) Neely Spence (PA), 19:58
3) Katie Follett (WA), 19:59
4) Alisha Williams (CO), 20:03
5) Julie Culley (NJ), 20:09
WOMEN’S TEAM
1) adidas/Team Rogue Elite, 74 points, $5000
2) Boulder Running Company, 107, $3000
3) Club Northwest, 137, $2000
4) New York Athletic Club, 143, $1500
5) New Balance Boston, 169, $1000
