Koll Leads 1-2 Big 12 5k Finish

02.29.2008 | Track and Field

By: cyclones.com

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Two-time All-American Iowa State distance runner Lisa Koll is now a Big 12 champion. Koll, a Fort Dodge native who never won a prep state crown, captured the Big 12 5,000-meter gold Friday in a 1-2 finish with teammate Grace Kemmey to highlight ISU's first day of the 2008 Big 12 Indoor Track and Field Championships on Friday in Lincoln, Neb. in the Bob Devaney Center. Iowa State's women's team is in seventh-place with 18 points after the first day of competition. Nebraska leads the women's scoring with 49.5 points. The Cyclone men are ninth with nine points. Colorado is the men's team leader with 34 points.

“We had a lot of ups and downs,” Iowa State head coach Corey Ihmels said. “Obviously Lisa ran a great race and the 1-2 finish in the 5,000 with Grace is a great moment for our program.”

Koll ran by herself the entire way and was just 70 meters from lapping Kemmey, who ran a great race in her own right. Koll won in 16:18.87, followed by Kemmey in 16:42.40. Koll is the second women's indoor 5,000-meter conference champion in school history. Sydney Pounds won the race in 1997, becoming Iowa State's first Big 12 champion in any sport. Koll already owns the school 5,000-meter record and has automatically qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. on March 14-15.

“Words can't describe this,” Koll said. “This is obviously a goal and expectation since the beginning of the year. To actually come here and do it, though, you can't really put that feeling into words.”

Koll was ready to run alone.

“I've always been comfortable running alone, it doesn't really bother me,” Koll said. “I just take it lap by lap and the pace was comfortable, it felt really relaxed. There is a little pressure, because you feel like you're supposed to go out and do that, but I like to go out and perform up to that pressure.”

Kemmey's race was more methodical. The fellow cross-country All-American pulled away from the pack late in the race to assure a runner-up finish. Kemmey is also provisionally-qualified in the event.

“I talked to my coach and the strategy was to try and be second and then qualify for nationals,” Kemmey said. “I thought I could run at a faster pace than I was going, but my coaches kept saying I should keep going at that pace. I felt I could go faster, and that's when I decided to just go.”

Koll will have a 3,000-meter showdown Saturday with NCAA champion Sally Kipyego of Texas Tech, who is also is automatically-qualified for the national meet in the 5,000, and owns the fastest time in the nation.

“I'm really excited about running the 3k,” Koll said. “It will be a competitive race. I am taking (the 5,000-meter win) and using it as a confidence builder.”

In the men's 800 meters, ISU school-record holder James Galvan dominated the competition, at one point leading his prelim heat by 45 meters and winning by 20 meters, in 1:49.35 to advance to Saturday's final. The Cyclone junior-college transfer will go stride-for-stride Saturday with Texas' Jacob Hernandez, who holds the fastest time in the Big 12 of 1:47.89. Galvan owns the second-fastest time in the conference, 1:48.36.

“I got out quick, and then just cruised,” Galvan said. “I thought that the others were right behind me.”

Junior Zac Brouillette's continued his improvement in the weight throw. The Sioux City, Iowa native threw a personal-best 59-10.50 for seventh place, scoring two points for ISU. Brouillette has increased his career best toss in the weight throw by over twelve feet from the start of the season. The former Cyclone football player will compete again tomorrow in the shot put, scheduled for 4:45 p.m.

“I've come a long way, I PR'ed today,” Brouillette said. “A year ago, my best here was 47 feet.”

Two Cyclones qualified in the mile run from the third heat of the event. Hillary Bor paced himself to a career-best finish, running a 4:09.11, to place second in the heat. Sophomore Daniel Fadgen led the first three laps of the race, and held on to earn the eighth slot in tomorrow's final, with a time of 4:12.58.

“Hillary did everything he was supposed to,” Ihmels said. “He ran well and the biggest star if you will, goes to Daniel Fadgen for getting into the final.”

Bor was not going to leave anything to chance.

“I knew that in the third heat we would have to run hard,” Bor said. “I knew I had to stay up front because I was pretty sure that only first and second would make finals.”

Both Cyclones will be competing in their first Big 12 Championships final on Saturday. Bor, a cross country standout, is a freshman from Eldoret, Kenya. Fadgen, a transfer from the Air Force Academy, redshirted the 2007 indoor season.

“I didn't think I could kick it in like some of those guys,” Fadgen said. “So I planned to go to the front and push the pace. It feels great to be in the final.”

Junior James Robinson is another first-time Cyclone qualifier in a conference meet, earning a trip to Saturday's final in the 600-yard run. The Council Bluffs native ran a 1:11.25 to capture the first heat.

“We got out slow, so I decided I had better take it myself,” Robinson said. “I thought if I ran like I have all year, I would make the final. I really like running on this track.”

ISU footballer Derron Montgomery cruised in his heat of the 400-meter dash, running 47.95, and earned the fourth-fastest time heading into Saturday's finals. Montgomery is quite the story. Recruited to Iowa State as a freshman for football, the wide receiver tore his ACL, for the second time in the same knee, during 2007 spring football.

“It still is not 100 percent, I have concentrated on track this semester as my knee heals,” Montgomery said. “I am still going to play football. In high school I had run 46.8 in the 400-meters, but when I hurt my knee, I never got back to 100 percent. I am going to go ice it down right now.”

Machacek sprinted to the 400-meter finish in 55.86 earning a career-best time and a spot in the finals of the 400-meter dash. In her first Big 12 Championships, Machacek finished second in her heat by breaking away from the third and fourth competitors in the final turn.

Distance runner David Lantz will return to the finals in the 1,000-meters. The sophomore placed third in his heat and eighth overall with a time of 2:27.65. Lantz placed sixth in last year's 1,000-meter run.

Cross country standout Kiel Uhl added two points to the men's total with his seventh-place finish in the men's 5,000-meter run. Uhl ran 14:22.27, less than a second behind the sixth-place finisher and two seconds behind the fifth-place competitor. Colorado tallied the top-four placings in the event.

Along with the Cyclones who nabbed bids to tomorrow's finals, several ISU athletes secured personal bests. Lashawn Wright, who ran a 24.32 in the 200-meter dash and Stefan Tauber, who leaped 23-5.50 in the long jump, set career bests on Friday.

Iowa State ended the day with the distance medley relay, where Brandon Rooney, Jared Lewis, Michael Alexander and Jayden Russ battled for fourth place in a stacked field. The quartet ran 9:59.97.

Tomorrow's events begin at 9:30 a.m., with the 60-meter hurdles, as Ryan Paul continues in the men's heptathlon. Events are scheduled to conclude at 6:45 p.m. Results will be posted following the conclusion of the meet.

Men's Results

Weight Throw- 1, Egor Agafonov, Kansas, 74-04.50, 7, Zac Brouillette Iowa State, 59-10.50

Mile Run (prelim results)- 1, Leonel Manzino, Texas, 4:08.72 , 5, Hillary Bor, Iowa State, 4:09.11, 8, Daniel Fadgen, Iowa State, 4:12.58

600-Yard Run (prelim results)- 1, Tevan Everett, Texas, 1:10.11, 4, James Robinson, Iowa State, 1:11.25

400-Meter Dash (prelim results)- 1, Lukas Hullett, Nebraska, 47.55, 4, Derron Montgomery, Iowa State, 47.95

1,000-Meter Run (prelim results)- 1, Kyle Miller, Texas, 2:24.16, 8, David Lantz, Iowa State, 2:27.65

800-Meter Run (prelim results)- 1, James Galvan, Iowa State, 1:49.35

Distance Medley Relay- 1, Texas, 9:49.39, 4, Iowa State, 9:59.97

Women's Results

400-Meter Dash (prelim results)- 1, Leslie Cole, Oklahoma, 53.53, 8, Brittany Machacek, Iowa State, 55.86

5,000-Meter Run- 1, Lisa Koll, Iowa State, 16:18.87, 2, Grace Kemmey, Iowa State, 16:42.40