1999 Cross Country Season Review

Lincoln - With the return of three letterwinners from last year's squad and bolstered by the best freshman recruiting class in school history, the Nebraska men's cross country team entered the season looking to better a disappointing 1998 season.

The team returned three juniors in Aaron Carrizales, Todd Tripple and Marcus Witter, the No. 1 runner for NU in four of his six meets last year.

Nebraska opened its season at home as the Huskers played host to the 10th Annual Woody Greeno/Nebraska Invitational on Sept. 18 at Pioneers Park.

Nebraska, which was looking for its third-straight team title, tied with the U.S. Air Force Academy for top honors. The Huskers were led by Witter, who finished fifth out of more than 200 runners. Carrizales, finished 22nd, followed by freshmen Mike Kamm (24th) and Jed Barta (36th). Sophomore Jared Carlson, a transfer from BYU finished 37th, while freshmen James De Bruhl (39th) and Phillip Davis (40th) rounded out the top seven for the Huskers.

The next test for the Huskers would come in Minneapolis, Minn., at the Roy Griak Invitational on Sept. 25. Nebraska faced off against Big 12 opponents Iowa State, Kansas and Missouri. The Huskers took 16th and were again led by Witter, who finished 27th. Kamm turned in a solid race finishing 63rd, while Carrizales crossed in 71st-place.

As the season progressed, competition grew stronger and at the National Invitational meet on Oct. 9, Nebraska faced its toughest opponents to date. The race, hosted by Penn State University, featured 3rd-ranked North Carolina State.

Although Witter ran a strong race, earning his second top-10 finish of the season placing eighth, the Huskers could not compete against the talented N.C. State team. The Wolfpack won the meet taking the first seven places, while the Huskers finished fourth, edging out conference opponents Kansas (5th) and Baylor (7th).

A week later, Nebraska competed at the Seventh Annual Wolverine Interregional meet in Ann Arbor, Mich., where the team faced No. 8 James Madison and No. 11 Michigan.

Nebraska finished seventh in the 10-team field behind Witter?s sixth-place finish. Kamm captured 30th, followed by Carrizales in 31st place. Four freshmen rounded out the scoring for Nebraska, including Barta (49th), Ian Gray (55th), De Bruhl (68th) and Davis (79th).

With the national meet drawing near, the team had two weeks to prepare for the Big 12 Championships, hosted by Texas A&M University. The Huskers entered the meet looking to better last year's disappointing eighth-place finish.

A talented but young squad toed the line in College Station, Texas, and led by Witter, finished sixth. The junior from Kearney, Neb., finished 23rd followed by Carrizales, who saved his best race for the conference championships taking 31st. Four freshmen were among NU?s top finishers including Kamm (35th), Barta (39th), De Bruhl (54th) and Gray (60th).

Head Coach Jay Dirksen said after the meet, that his team gave everything they had.

"I think it was about as good as we could expect," Dirksen said. "We had people that just put out the best effort they could give us. With that, you just can?t ask for anything more."

The team then traveled to Savoy, Ill., on Nov. 13th to compete in the Midwest Regional Championships hoping to earn a berth to the NCAA Championships.

As was the case all season, Witter was the first Husker to cross the line, narrowly missing the top 10 with an 11th-place finish. Although Nebraska wasn't invited to nationals, the Huskers' seventh-place finish did not earn them a bid, Dirksen said the team made great strides this season.

"I think the men made a tremendous improvement over last year," he said. "Considering that for five of them, this is the first 10,000-meter race they?ve ever run, I think they really did a great job."

Next seaon looks bright as the Huskers return the entire team, including four freshmen who placed in Nebraska?s top six at the regional meet.

In 1999, the Nebraska women's cross country team boasted a strong squad of relatively new runners to the collegiate cross country scene. Returning from the 1998 team were four talented runners including senior Jaime Pauli, who would be looked to for leadership. Jeannette Zimmer, the Huskers' top runner last year, was also back along with junior Amie Finkner and senior Melinda Oliver.

The team opened the season by hosting the Woody Greeno/Nebraska Invitational. Nebraska entered the race looking for its 10th straight title, but the Huskers encountered a strong Kansas State squad that captured five of the top 10 places, including the top four.

Nebraska had two runners finish in the top 10, including newcomer Michelle Brooks, who finished fifth in her first collegiate race on American soil. The race would prove to be a precursor for things to come for the Preston, England, native. Pauli ran a strong race, finishing seventh, while Zimmer took 13th. Freshman Kathryn Handrup ran a solid first race, taking 15th, while Oliver finished 17th and junior Jaimie Kruger, a transfer from the University of Nebraska-Kearney, finished 18th.

A week later at the Roy Griak Invitational, hosted by the University of Minnesota, the women caught a glimpse of what conference competition would be like when they encountered Big 12 opponents Iowa State, Kansas and Missouri.

The team battled eight teams ranked in the top 25, including then No. 1 BYU. Despite the formidable competition, the Huskers finished fifth, the only unranked team to crack the top five.

Brooks led the Huskers with a 13th-place finish followed by Pauli, who took 22nd. Zimmer, who was coming off an injury, finished 43rd, while Handrup, who made the transition to collegiate running rather quickly, finished 56th.

The Huskers? strong performance in Minneapolis earned them national recognition and the No. 15 spot in the FinishLynx Poll, but the following off-week saw the team drop to No. 17.

At the National Invitational meet in University Park, Pa., the Huskers were without their No. 1 runner, as Brooks did not travel due to illness.

Pauli paced the Huskers with a ninth-place finish, while Zimmer took 11th and Handrup 18th. Other Nebraska runners included Kruger (20th), Mirjana Glisovic (26th), Oliver (28th) and freshman Jenna Lucas (33rd).

In Ann Arbor, No. 19 Nebraska faced two ranked teams in the Wolverine Interregional meet, where Nebraska took second on the strength of Brooks? ninth-place finish. Close on her heels was Pauli, who finished 10th.

The Huskers used the next two weeks to prepare for the conference championships in College Station, Texas, where they would face six teams ranked in the top 25 nationally.

Led by Brooks' seventh-place finish, the second-highest finish by a Husker in the four year history of the meet, the women finished fourth, behind Colorado, Kansas State and Missouri.

Pauli cracked the top 20 with a 17th-place finish, while Handrup finished 22nd. The Huskers were without Zimmer, who would miss the remainder of the season because of three stress fractures in her legs.

With two weeks to prepare for regionals, the Huskers had their sites set on a first- or second-place finish and an automatic bid to nationals.

At the Midwest Regional Championships in Savoy, Ill., No. 23 Nebraska was again led by Brooks, who turned in her best performance of the season, helping the team to a fourth-place finish. Brooks' seventh-place finish earned her All-Big 12 honors and marked the fourth time this season the senior cracked the top 10.

Two days later, the team learned they were one of 13 at-large teams chosen to compete at the NCAA Championships in Bloomington, Ind., on Nov 22.

The Huskers saved their best performance for the biggest race of the year, claiming 16th place. Brooks, who finished 31st, ended her collegiate cross country career in fine fashion, recording the best individual performance by a Husker since 1993. Fellow senior Pauli also had a strong final race finishing 85th, while Handrup finished 137th.

Although next season the Huskers will lose their top two runners, the women return four members from a team that turned in the fifth-best performance in school history and with the addtition of talented recruits, Nebraska will be a force to reckon with in 2000.