Last Saturday, the University of Tampa women’s cross country team traveled to Louisville, Ky. for one intention — to win the 2010 NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships.
What they did not prepare for was the two inches of snow that covered E.P. “Tom” Sawyer State Park, the course of the Championships.
With weather in the 30º F range and snow falling down, the squad battled rigorous weather conditions, finishing in 15th place in the championships.
Grand Valley State won the race to claim their first-ever women’s cross country National Championship.
To lead the Spartans individually was junior Heather Nicolosi who crossed the finish line in 34th place in the field of 187. Nicolosi didn’t stop there. With a time of 22:14 in the women’s 6K, she became an All-American, adding to her 2010 Sunshine State Conference Female Runner of the Year and first-team All-SSC honors this season.
Challenging weather might have stopped Nicolosi from finishing in the top-five, but success was evident in Louisville.
“Mentally I did not run well, but I am extremely thrilled about the All-American honors,” Nicolosi stated.
With success comes motivation and hard work, and Coach Jarrett Slaven believes Nicolosi does just that when it comes to running, as well as in life.
“She is a driven individual and goes right after her goals on and off the race course,” he said.
Lindsay Edwards (66th, 22:52.1), was the other Spartan runner to finish in the top 100 of the championship.
Additionally, Kelly Hagan (124th, 23:53.6), Kaia Hampton (131st, 23:58.7), Katie O’Brien (139th, 24:14), Iolani Scanlon (169th, 25:08.4) and Chanelle Cox (171st, 25:14.7) were part of Tampa’s National Championship roster.
As the women’s team posted a 15th place finish at Nationals, UT’s Tony Nicolosi raced as an individual for the men’s championship, ending the 10k race with a time of 32:40.9 to finish 95th.
The Spartan women finished the season with five first-place showings and with top-10 finishes in every race they competed in.
In a season where success was prevalent, team morale and support stayed strong.
“We all learned something from our season and nationals,” Nicolosi said.
“I am proud of the girls’ team as a whole. We ran well together and accomplished a lot this season.”
For the men, they look into next year with high hopes as they complete the 2010 season with one first-place showing and five top-five finishes.
As both teams look ahead, the Spartan women hope to see All-American runner Jess Butler return to the 2011 roster after sitting out all season due to a leg injury. She will be entering her senior year at UT.
The men will lose their star runner Tony Nicolosi due to graduation, but runners like Charles Toledo and Lewis Price will try to lead the Spartans to a national appearance in 2011.
Michael Paonessa can be reached at mpaonessa@spartans.ut.edu.