2008 Woodie Awards
Hogs run away with Chile Pepper, Lady'Backs finish second
Matt Watson
Issue date: 10/15/07 Section: Sports
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A concerted team effort gave the No. 9 Razorbacks a big victory at the 19th annual Chile Pepper Festival on their home field of Agri Park Saturday.
The Hogs' five scoring harriers placed between fifth and 13th overall, for a total of 47 points, well ahead of second-place Abilene Christian, with 74 points. Virginia Tech placed third with 162 points.
"Great day, great crowd. I'm glad we pulled off the win," Arkansas coach John McDonnell said. "More importantly, we looked like a team again."
Senior Shawn Forrest paved the way for the Hogs' third team victory in four events this season with a fifth place overall finish and a time of 29:44.
Forrest was one of only six athletes in the field of 259 collegians that broke a 30-minute 10K.
Right behind Forrest were teammates Scott MacPherson in eighth place, Tyler Hill in ninth and Matt Munoz and Chris Barnicle at 12th and 13th, respectively.
"That was the plan," Forrest said. "There were no heroics, no one was going to win it at the start. We all worked together, tried to stay out there and hung on."
"[Forrest] ran a great race," McDonnell said. "He gained valuable experience. He can hang with those guys [up front]."
Abilene Christian's Nicodemus Naimadu, who came into the race not having lost an individual title since the 2005 Chile Pepper run, finished second overall.
The two-time NCAA Division II National Athlete of the Year was runner-up to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's Shadrack Songok, the defending NCAA Division I 10K champion in outdoor track. Corpus Christi finished sixth overall as a team.
"Cross country is all about winning," McDonnell said. "It's not like track. There's only one winner and everyone else is running for second, so if you don't win the team [title], you come home empty-handed as far as I'm concerned."
The win was nice, but the team competed like they should have been competing all year, McDonnell said.
The Hogs' five scoring harriers placed between fifth and 13th overall, for a total of 47 points, well ahead of second-place Abilene Christian, with 74 points. Virginia Tech placed third with 162 points.
"Great day, great crowd. I'm glad we pulled off the win," Arkansas coach John McDonnell said. "More importantly, we looked like a team again."
Senior Shawn Forrest paved the way for the Hogs' third team victory in four events this season with a fifth place overall finish and a time of 29:44.
Forrest was one of only six athletes in the field of 259 collegians that broke a 30-minute 10K.
Right behind Forrest were teammates Scott MacPherson in eighth place, Tyler Hill in ninth and Matt Munoz and Chris Barnicle at 12th and 13th, respectively.
"That was the plan," Forrest said. "There were no heroics, no one was going to win it at the start. We all worked together, tried to stay out there and hung on."
"[Forrest] ran a great race," McDonnell said. "He gained valuable experience. He can hang with those guys [up front]."
Abilene Christian's Nicodemus Naimadu, who came into the race not having lost an individual title since the 2005 Chile Pepper run, finished second overall.
The two-time NCAA Division II National Athlete of the Year was runner-up to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's Shadrack Songok, the defending NCAA Division I 10K champion in outdoor track. Corpus Christi finished sixth overall as a team.
"Cross country is all about winning," McDonnell said. "It's not like track. There's only one winner and everyone else is running for second, so if you don't win the team [title], you come home empty-handed as far as I'm concerned."
The win was nice, but the team competed like they should have been competing all year, McDonnell said.
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