Men's Cross Country Finishes Second at SEC Championships
11/1/2010 12:00:00 AM
Nov. 1, 2010
COLUMBIA, S.C. - The University of Alabama men's cross country team fell short of winning its third consecutive Southeastern Conference title as Arkansas edged the Crimson Tide for the team title at the 2010 SEC Championships Monday morning.
The Razorbacks, who won their 18th SEC title, had all five of their scorers finish in the top 10 for a team score of 34 while all of Alabama's scorers finished in the top 20 for 62 total points. Florida was third with 69 points on the 8-kilometer course.
"We talked earlier in the week about needing all five guys in the top 20 and we did that," Alabama head coach Joe Walker said. "However, Arkansas came through and performed at a high level, ran a great team race and really moved through the field."
The Tide was led by Julius Bor in fourth place with a time of 24:05.88 while Carison Kemei also finished in the top 10 with a ninth-place time of 24:23.65.
"Those guys were out in front, ran an aggressive all race and did a great job," Walker said. "The guys they finished behind are All-Americans and they did a great job of challenging them and that bodes well going forward."
Mississippi's Barnabas Kirui won his third individual title with a 23:52.07 finish followed by Auburn's Ben Cheruiyot and Arkansas' Dorian Ulrey.
Joel Rop came across third for UA with a 12th-place time of 24:34.14 while Moses Kiptoo and Andrew Kirwa finished back-to-back in 18th and 19th with times of 24:48.91 and 24:49.54, respectively.
By virtue of their finishes, Bor earned first team All-SEC honors while Kemei and Rop were named to the second team. The honor is the second for Bor who was a member of the second team in 2009.
The Tide will have a weekend off from competition to prepare for the NCAA South Region Championships on Nov. 13 in Birmingham, Ala.
2010 SEC Championships
Columbia, S.C. - 8 Kilometers
Team Results
1. Arkansas - 34
2. Alabama - 62
3. Florida - 69
4. Tennessee - 132
5. Mississippi - 154
6. Georgia - 155
7. Mississippi State - 211
8. Kentucky - 222
9. LSU - 231
10. Auburn - 234
11. Vanderbilt - 278
Alabama Individual Results
4. Julius Bor - 24:05.88
9. Carison Kemei - 24:23.65
12. Joel Rop - 24:34.14
18. Moses Kiptoo - 24:48.91
19. Andrew Kirwa - 24:49.54
60. Nathan Corder - 26:32.60
78. Evan Kendrick - 27:23.39
