Mountaineers Among Nation’s Best
June 16, 2010 01:03 PM | General
June 16, 2010
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University track and field and cross country teams have been honored among the nation’s best programs, after being recognized on the Terry Crawford Program of the Year Award list announced by the United States Track and Field and Cross County Coaches Association.
The Mountaineers ended the season with 33.5 points and were No. 5 overall on the list, after finishing sixth at the 2009 NCAA Cross County Championships, and 10th and 16th, respectively, at the indoor and outdoor track and field championships.
“What a tremendous compliment to our track and field teams here at West Virginia," coach Sean Cleary says. “To be considered a top five program when analyzing cross country and indoor and outdoor track and field is simply remarkable. This award is a reflection of the support that we are given within the athletic department, the commitment and ability of our coaching staff and finally the belief, discipline, dedication and unbridled desire to succeed of our student athletes.
“To know that only four teams from coast to coast outperformed this team is a sensational way to end our year and plan for the future.”
The Terry Crawford Program of the Year Award is awarded annually to the most outstanding NCAA Division I women’s cross country and track and field program. The award honors the institution that has achieved the most success in each academic year based on the institution’s finish at the NCAA Division I Championships in the three seasons.
Oregon topped the list for the second year in a row. The Ducks were followed by Florida, Penn State and Florida State.
The Mountaineers were the top-scoring BIG EAST team on the list, as the 2009 NCAA cross county champions Villanova finished at No. 9.
WVU ended the 2009-10 season with 14 student-athletes earning All-America honors in the three sports combined.
Seniors Marie-Louise Asselin, Keri Bland and Clara Grandt set the pace for the WVU running program, as they earned All-America honors in all three seasons.
Bland was the first WVU female to achieve this honor in 2008. She repeated that showing this season after a 34th-place finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championships (20:45), two eighth-place showings at the indoor championships as a part of the distance medley relay team and in the mile. Bland then capped of the season with ninth-place finish in the 1,500-meter race at the outdoor championships.
Grandt became an All-American in cross country earlier in the year after finishing 13th (20:19) at the NCAA Championships. She then earned her second honor of the season in indoor track in the 5,000-meter race after finishing as one of the top U.S. Citizens in the race. Her last honor of the season came with a fourth-place finish in the 10,000-meter race at the outdoor championships.
Asselin ended the 2009-10 season as the national runner-up performance in the 5,000-meter race at the outdoor championships. Her first honor came with a 31st-place finish in cross country (20:43), followed by a second-place finish in the 5,000-meter race at the indoor championships (15:50.53).
