ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - If the 2001 season was any indication, the future of the University of New Mexico cross country program will be very bright in the years to come. This past fall, head coach Matt Henry and his brother, associate head coach Mark Henry, led the young Lobos to new heights. Under the tutelage of the second year coaches, UNM took a big step towards returning to national prominence.
Three athletes (So. Matt Gonzales, So. Ben Ortega, Fr. Jackie Gallegos) automatically qualified for the NCAA Cross Country Championship meet giving New Mexico its first NCAA qualifiers since April Brannon in 1997 and its biggest NCAA contingent since the men qualified as a team in 1988. Matt Gonzales capped the season finishing 30th at the NCAA Championships to become the Lobos' fifth men's cross country All-American and first since Ibrahim Kivina in 1982.
In addition to the strong showing at the NCAA Championships, the 2001 season also saw Matt and Mark Henry reestablish Albuquerque as one of the premier cross country locations in the West. After welcoming five teams for the UNM Lobo Invitational on Sept. 22, New Mexico hosted the 2001 Mountain West Conference Cross Country Championships on Oct. 17, the first cross country conference championship meet held in Albuquerque since 1974. On a warm, sunny day at the scenic Paradise Hills Golf Course, Brigham Young captured both the men's and women's titles in a meet that many MWC coaches described as one of the finest cross country events in the nation and perhaps the best conference championship meet ever conducted. With the universal acclaim of the conference coaches, Albuquerque was selected as the host for the 2002 NCAA Mountain Regional Championship meet, which is sure to be one of the most elite competitions in the country next fall.
With all of the women and all but one member of the men's team returning, the Henry's will lead two of the most promising young teams in the West next fall. Bolstered by another outstanding group of newcomers, the University of New Mexico will be poised to take the next step forward in 2002 and make its mark once again on the national cross country stage.
2001 LOBO TEAM NOTES
After winning its first meet in 4 years last year, the UNM men's team won 2 meets in 2001, the Lori Fitzgerald Invitational (El Paso, Texas) and the Arizona State Invitational (Gilbert, Ariz.). The Lobos blasted regional rivals UTEP and New Mexico State at the Lori Fitzgerald, winning with a score of 18, just 3 points shy of a perfect score. A month later, UNM cruised to a 25-pt. victory over regionally ranked UCLA and No. 15 ASU's "B" team.
New Mexico's ability to run as a team was a key element of the squad's success this fall. The men's top-3 runners finished an average of 49 seconds apart in the team's 6 meets, while the top-5 were separated by an average of 1:31, On the women's side, the top-3 runners were separated by 1:12 on average, while the top-5 ran an average of 2:03 apart.
UNM had 3 individual meet winners (Matt Gonzales, Chris Orrell, Sarah Gonzales) this year and 13 top-5 finishes. Last season, no Lobo finished higher than 3rd and there were just 5 top-5 finishers on the men's and women's sides.
A group of 17 talented newcomers made an immediate impact on both the men's and women's teams in 2002. On the men's side, 3 of the squad's top-7 runners were newcomers, led by sophomore Matt Gonzales, a transfer from New Mexico Highlands. Overall 9 newcomers competed for the men's team, combining for 13 top-25 finishes, including 7 top-10 finishes by Gonzales and freshman Cameron Clarke. On the women's side, freshman Jackie Gallegos led a contingent of 8 newcomers, comprising 2/3 of the team. The new Lobos accounted for 12 top-25 finishes, including 2 top-15 finishes by Gallegos.
Sophomores Chris Orrell and Matt Gonzales were each selected Mountain West Conference Men's Cross Country Athlete of the Week in 2001, the first Lobos ever to receive the weekly honor. Orrell was awarded after winning the Lori Fitzgerald Invitational, while Gonzales was recognized for his victory at the ASU Invitational.
Men's fastest 8K last year was a time of 25:40...best 8K this season was 24:19 and 10th-fastest was 25:34...meanwhile, the women ran 5 sub-23:00 6K's this season, compared to 4 last fall
All of the women's team and all but one member (senior Travis Clark) of the men's team should return in 2002.
2001 MEN'S INDIVIDUAL NOTES
Matt Gonzales
So-Tr * Santa Fe, N.M. (New Mexico Highlands)
Emerged as one of the finest young cross country runners in the nation...finished 30th at the NCAA Championships to become New Mexico's first All-American in 19 years, since Ibrahim Kivina in 1982...a Division II All-American at New Mexico Highlands last fall, Gonzales also led all MWC runners at the NCAA Championships, including league champ Teren Jameson of Utah
Placed 9th at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships...earned first team all-Mountain West Conference honors, finishing runner-up
Led the Lobos in the team's final 5 meets of the year and recorded 4 of the top-10 8K times, including a team-best 24:19 at the MWC Championships...5 top-10 finishes
Named MWC Men's Cross Country Athlete of the Week on Oct. 9 after winning the ASU Invitational on Oct. 5
Ben Ortega
So-1L * Taos, N.M. (Taos HS)
Developed into one of the elite runners in the West with outstanding sophomore campaign capped by NCAA Championship bid...finished 106th out of 244 runners..time of 31:03 was the second-fastest 10K of the year for UNM
Improved 15 places at NCAA Mountain Region meet, finishing 11th...earned 2nd team all-Mountain West honors, placing 10th at MWC Championships
Finished among the Lobos' top-3 in 6 meets and led the team at the UNM Lobo Invitational...2nd on the team in each of the last 4 meets...owned 3 top-10 8K times, including 2 of the team's top-3 times...3 top-10 finishes, 5 top-15 finishes
Chris Orrell
So-1L * Albuquerque, N.M. (La Cueva HS)
Strong sophomore campaign, despite struggling a bit late in the season...3 top-5 finishes to start the season...owned 2 of team's top-10 8K times
Named New Mexico's first ever MWC Men's Cross Country Athlete of the Week on Sep. 4 after first collegiate victory at Lori Fitzgerald Invitational
Outstanding collegiate debut...finished among Lobos' top-5 in 5 meets...led all Lobo freshmen with 4 top-25 finishes and notched the 8th-fastest 8K of the year, the only freshman in the top-10
Finished second on the team at the ASU Invitational...5th place finish was highest of the season and helped the Lobos cruise to victory
Sean Flaherty
So-1L * Albuquerque, N.M. (Manzano HS)
Integral member of men's squad in first full cross country season...competed in just 1 race last fall
Was one of the team's top-7 runners in every meet...finished among Lobos' top-5 in 4 races...3 top-20 finishes on the season
Travis Clark
Sr-3L * Albuquerque, N.M. (La Cueva HS)
Solid senior season...lone veteran on team dominated by underclassmen...3 top-20 finishes...finished among Lobos' top-7 in every meet and scored in 2 races
Chad Dawson
Fr-HS * Kirtland, N.M. (Kirtland Central HS)
Contributed throughout the fall, finishing among New Mexico's top-7 runners in 4 meets...was 5th on the team at the MWC Championships...1 top-25 finish
Nick Martinez
So-1L * Pojoaque, N.M. (Pojoaque HS)
Finished among the team's top-7 in 4 meets...scored in 1 meet and notched 3 top-25 finishes
Stellar freshman debut capped by impressive NCAA Championship bid...one of the youngest Lobos ever to race at the NCAA's...finished 217th out of 244 runners
Rebounded well from a brief mid-season slump...finished 19th at NCAA Mountain Region Championships to earn automatic bid...also took 19th at MWC Championships
Led the Lobos in 3 meets and notched 4 top-20 finishes overall, including 3rd place in first collegiate race at Lori Fitzgerald Invite...recorded 4 of the team's top-10 6K times
Sarah Gonzales
So-1L * Albuquerque, N.M. (Cibola HS)
Improved by leaps and bounds in 2001...UNM's most consistent runner throughout the season...led the team in 3 meets and finished among the team's top-3 in every race after running 6th on the squad most of last year
Owned the two fastest 6K times and 4 of top-10 6K times overall...notched 3 top-20 finishes after placing no higher than 21st as a freshman
Blew away the field at the UNM Lobo Invitational, leading from start to finish to earn her first career victory
Kim Baca
Jr-1L * Belen, N.M. (Belen HS)
Turned in an outstanding season, improving tremendously in second year of competition...steady throughout the season, finishing among the squad's top-3 in every meet
Owned two of the Lobos' top-10 6K times and led the team at the ASU Invitational...2nd on the team in 2 other races...recorded 3 top-25 finishes overall
Competed in just 2 races, but ran fourth on the team at both the MWC and NCAA Mountain Region Championship meets...recorded team's 10th-fastest 6K of the season at the MWC Championships
Amanda Woods
Fr-HS * Albuquerque, N.M. (La Cueva HS)
Solid contributor in first season...finished among Lobos' top-7 in 4 meets, scoring at both the MWC and NCAA Mountain Region Championships...notched 2 top-25 finishes overall
Sarah Fraher
Fr-HS * Moriarty, N.M. (Moriarty HS)
Finished among New Mexico's top-7 in 4 meets, scoring in 3 races...finished in top-20 in first two races of the year
Laura Marquis
Fr-HS * Albuquerque, N.M. (Albuquerque Academy)
Finished among the squad's top-7 in 4 races...scored in 2 meets, including the ASU Invite where she finished 2nd on the team
Racquel Ricci
Fr-HS * Albuquerque, N.M. (La Cueva HS)
Ran with UNM's top-7 in each of her 3 meets this season and scored in 2 races
Christine White
Fr-HS * Albuquerque, N.M. (St. Pius X HS)
Competed in 5 races, finishing among the team's top-7 in 4...scored at the NCAA Pre-Meet and ASU Invitational
FROM HEAD COACH MATT HENRY
(overall thoughts about the 2001 season): "We got a lot better this year. To top off the year with three people qualifying for the national meet was more than what we thought could happen this year."
(on the impact competing at the NCAA Championships will have on the program): "I think it's a very good indication that our program is on the upswing and that this is a great place to come run."
(on the significance of having instate athletes leading the team): "I've always said if there was a way we could get all our New Mexico distance runners to stay home, we would never, ever have to recruit outside the state of New Mexico. We still haven't sold everyone on staying home, but if we can convince them, it'll be big for us."
(on the teams' chances in 2002): "We're looking at even having a better season next year. We're a little more upbeat about our chances next year. We've got everybody back except Travis (Clark) and we think we can take a whole team (to the NCAA Championships
