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Volume CXXXII, Number 11 |
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Men's XC charges to eighth place finish in DIII nationals
ALEX MOORE
STAFF WRITER
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| Senior Scott Barbuto sprints to the finish line to place thirty-ninth in the Division III national championship. (Photo courtesy of Ruth Barney) |
The Bowdoin Men's Cross-Country Team finished eighth out of 24 teams at the NCAA Division III Championship at St. Olaf College, Minnesota on November 23rd. The results were an improvement over Bowdoin's 2001 eleventh place nationals finish. The men's team (267 points) was the second New England school, trailing seventh place Williams College by only 11 points.
First place Wisconsin Oshkosh tallied 66 points, while second place Calvin College scored 122. The two other competing New England teams, Keene State and Connecticut College, finished twelfth and twentieth, respectively. A week earlier, the Bowdoin men had finished second to Keene State at the New England DIII Championship.
The mid 40 degree temperatures in Northfield were optimal for the Bowdoin runners, who had endured sleet and hail a week earlier at the regional championship. The championship race was marked by several outstanding individual performances by Bowdoin runners. Co-captain Todd Forsgren '03 finished in thirty-fourth place in a time of 25:47, while Scott Barbuto '03 finished in thirty-ninth place in 25:51.
Because Forsgren placed in the top 35 runners, he was named an All American for the second consecutive year. Scott Barbuto and Todd Forsgren had the races of the day, running heroically with the lead pack for the entire race. After the race, an elated Barbuto-a scientist and patron of the arts--quoted the Roman lyricist Horace: "Exegi monumentum aere perennius!" (I have erected a monument more lasting than bronze).
Co-captain Pat Vardaro'03 crossed the line in 26:14, finishing seventy-seventh overall. Co-captain Jeff Rubens '03 and Ben Peisch '05 were the fourth and fifth runners for Bowdoin, finishing in 113th and 116th place, respectively. The top seven runners were rounded out by senior Dan Gulotta (174) and junior Scott Herrick (196). The race was won by senior Ryan Bak from Trinity College, in a time of 25:01.
Peisch described the start of the race: "It was crazy. Bodies were flying everywhere. I thought I had gotten off the line well and had put myself into a good position, but after the race I found out that Dan Gulotta and I were almost in last place at the mile mark! If I had known this while I was running, I probably would have flipped out and had a nervous breakdown or something, so I guess ignorance is bliss when it comes to running at Nationals."
Peisch and Gulotta ran smart races, and despite starting in the back, both finished in the middle of pack.
Vardaro, an avid outdoorsman, enjoyed the sites and sounds of the trip: "The beauty of Minnesota certainly inspired me to run faster. As far as the eye can see there are rolling hills, lush forests, brooks and streams, and many gaggles of geese. Now that I have my hunting license, I wish I had brought my gun."
Head Coach Peter Slovenski was pleased with the team's efforts from the first race to the last: "There were so many terrific contributions to the program that we ended up with a very powerful season. The more the students gave, the more they got back from the team." He continued, "This has been the best class of seniors we've ever had in cross country at Bowdoin. I'm proud of how this class improved each year and I'm proud of how well they worked together. It's a great testimony to their intelligence, hard work and talent that they finished as the eighth best team in Division III."
Herrick echoed Coach Slovenski's sentiments: "The seven seniors were a great presence on the team all season. They will be missed next year."
Rubens, who laced up his cross-country spikes for the final time on Saturday, explained the effect of having strong team chemistry: "Working together for four years made us want to run well in this race as much for each other, as for ourselves. We had a lot of talented individuals wearing a Bowdoin jersey on Saturday, but more importantly, we had a strong team." Rubens continued: "Our team camaraderie was instrumental to our success over the past few years. "The seven of us wanted to end this season without any regrets. We all pushed ourselves to the fullest, and we are very proud of the results."
After the race, the men's and women's teams went on brief tours of the world-famous Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and the Malt-o-Meal Cereal Plant and the Jesse James Museum in Northfield, Minnesota.
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