NC State
NCAA Southeast Regional
Laura Hoer Wins NCAA Southeast Regional
11/13/2010 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Nov. 13, 2010
NC State freshman Laura Hoer won the individual women’s championship Saturday at the NCAA Southeast Regional in Louisville, Ky.
Hoer’s victory was her fourth of the 2010 season, making her just the sixth runner in the history of the NC State cross country program, men or women, to win at least four races in a single season. She is the second freshman.
The Wolfpack women finished fourth with 153 points behind ACC rivals Virginia (65), Duke (100) and North Carolina (122). NC State finished third in the men's race with 131 points.William & Mary won the men's regional with 85 points. Duke was second at 116.
The top two teams in each race earn automatic bids to the NCAA Championships, which will be held Nov. 22 at Terre Haute, Ind. The Wolfpack men's and women's teams still can earn at-large bids by meeting criteria. At-large bids will be extended on Sunday.
Hoer took first place in the 6k women's race with a winning time of 19:54.5, a winning margin of nearly eight seconds. Junior Andie Cozzarelli was ninth at 20:26.9 to earn all-regional honors. Senior Kara McKenna was 19th at 21:00.9, also earning a spot on the all-regional team.
Redshirt-freshman Andrew Colley finished sixth in the men's 10k race with a time of 30:27.5, with junior Ryan Hill taking 11th at 30:34.0. Both were on the all-regional team.
Hoer began the season with a 29.5-second victory at the Wolfpack Invitational, then won the Roy Griak Invitational at Minneapolis, Minn., a week later. Two weeks ago, she won the Atlantic Coast Conference Women’s Championship.
Betty Springs set the NC State school record for cross country victories in a season with six in 1983, capped by her second national championship in three years. Suzie Tuffey won five races as a freshman in 1985, including the national championship, and just missed winning a sixth by less than a second. Julie Shea in 1980, Bob Henes in 1990 and Laura Rhodes in 1997 all won four championships in a single season. One of Shea’s victories in 1980 was the AIAW national championship, her second.
