MEN'S RESULTS | WOMEN'S RESULTS
TSLAT.COM PHOTOS
MEN'S PHOTOS | WOMEN'S PHOTOS | AWARDS PHOTOS
WAYNE, Neb. - Augustana's
Tom Karbo won the men's race and
Runa Falch won the women's to pace both squads to first-place finishes at the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Championship Saturday in Wayne, Neb. Viking head coach
Tracy Hellman also named NSIC Coach of the Year for the men.
The NSIC title is the third straight for the women and second consecutive for the men.
Karbo covered the 8K course in 25:19.71--more than 10 seconds ahead of Minnesota State's David Barmasai.
The Viking men owned five of the top six runners--netting just 19 points. Besides Karbo, Augustana's remaining athletes finished third, fourth, fifth and sixth.
Travis Beniak was third with a time of 25:39.76,
Matt Braithwaite was fourth in 25:55.21,
Paul Yak was fifth in 26:02.56 and
Daniel Black was sixth with a time of 26:04.96.
Karbo trailed Barmasai for a portion of the race, but he said he used his opponent to neutralize a windy course.
"I used him to draft for part of the race," said Karbo. "I was able to rest a litle bit, which gave me the edge to catch him."
Falch's time of 21:10.91 was 10 seconds better than defending NSIC champion Morgan Place from Minnesota Duluth. Falch trailed Place for much of the race but used a scorching final 1,000 meters to pull ahead. The freshman anchored Augustana's 39-point performance, which was just three points ahead of runner-up U-Mary.
Kristin Brondbo picked up a third-place finish, tracking the 6K route in 21:54.31.
Miriam Hovda earned ninth-place honors with a time of 22:59.61.
Annie Pfeifle was 10th in 23:00.16, and
Kyle Blakeslee was 16th in 23:14.71.
"I came into the race with the mindset that I was going to beat (Place)," said Falch. "But the individual win doesn't feel as good as the team win. The team win is a better first place."
The coach of the year nod is the third for Hellman, who has yet to see his women's team not win the NSIC title.
"Anytime you win a conference title it's special," said Hellman. "The men surpassed my expectations, and I knew the women would be able to battle for the championship."
The top 10 finishers from each race earned All-NSIC first team honors, while places 11 through 20 were earned second team accolades.
The Vikings return to Wayne on Nov. 20 for the NCAA Regional.
