{"comments":{"611578":{"pb_id":"17000","pb_type":"members","likes":"0","parent_id":"0","pid":"611578","comment_id":"611578","member_id":"17000","comment":"SOUTH BEND, Ind. \u00e2\u0080\u0094 Battered by rain, wind and blasts of cold air, the Florida State cross country teams delivered strong Notre Dame Invitational performances Friday \u00e2\u0080\u0093 a day made for the postman.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nKaren Harvey\u00e2\u0080\u0099s women routed the field in blustery conditions, with junior Amanda Winslow delivering a fourth-place finish to lead a trio of top 10 Seminoles. The seventh-ranked Seminoles totaled 54 points and were 62 clear of 18th-ranked runner-up Arkansas. They made a strong case for a major leap in the polls by blasting No. 2 New Mexico (164). In all, FSU dispatched five nationally-ranked teams from a field of 28, which included 26 with regional rankings.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nNot to be outdone, FSU senior Mike Fout once again flourished on his home soil, placing third overall as the Seminole men posted a runner-up finish to BYU. Fout flourished, despite losing a shoe which required him to stop at one point, covering the five-mile course in 24:01. A mere two seconds separated the All-American from nearby La Porte, Ind. from race winner Miles Batty of BYU (23:59). Princeton\u00e2\u0080\u0099s Donn Cabral was second in 24:00.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\n\u00e2\u0080\u009cIt was a good day and a great start to our season,\u00e2\u0080\u009d said Harvey, whose `Noles grabbed five of the top 18 spots. \u00e2\u0080\u009cI felt so bad for the kids. The course wasn\u00e2\u0080\u0099t fast at all.\u00e2\u0080\u009d<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nHarvey said a \u00e2\u0080\u009csheet or rain and wind\u00e2\u0080\u009d buffeted the Seminoles over the final mile of the 5-kilometer race at the Notre Dame Golf Course.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nWinslow seemed undeterred from the start.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\n\u00e2\u0080\u009cBig, big props to Amanda Winslow,\u00e2\u0080\u009d Harvey said. \u00e2\u0080\u009cShe got off the (starting) line perfectly.\u00e2\u0080\u009d<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nWinslow splashed her way through the soaked course in 17:06 as the temperature dropped to 50 degrees, which felt much colder given the rain and 20 mph winds. Close on her heels were fellow junior co-captain Jessica Parry, who was sixth in 17:11, and grad student Hannah Brooks (10th, 17:16).<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nThe Seminole women got a big lift from a pair of newcomers \u00e2\u0080\u0093 junior transfer Violah Lagat and freshman Colleen Quigley \u00e2\u0080\u0093 who paired up and raced across the line in 16th and 18th place, respectively. In their Division I debuts, Lagat crossed the line in 17:22, while Quigley was right behind at 17:24. Quigley was the first freshman to finish in the field of 225 runners.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nIn all, six of nine FSU women were making their competitive Division I debuts against a quality field.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\n\u00e2\u0080\u009cI think this really is a good start,\u00e2\u0080\u009d said Harvey. \u00e2\u0080\u009cOur top five spread (18 seconds, 14 places) was a little more than I wanted. \u00e2\u0080\u00a6 We\u00e2\u0080\u0099ve got a lot of building to do.\u00e2\u0080\u009d<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nFSU men\u00e2\u0080\u0099s coach Bob Braman brought a considerably more experienced team to Notre Dame than the women, but was nonetheless pleased with the fight the `Noles brought to the table. With Fout leading the charge, the Seminoles stuck all five scorers in the top 29 and dispatched seven nationally ranked teams.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\n\u00e2\u0080\u009cWe went into it knowing it was going to be a challenge and from a coaching standpoint I was hoping it was going to be a challenge,\u00e2\u0080\u009d Braman said. \u00e2\u0080\u009cYou can\u00e2\u0080\u0099t run fast this time of year, but you can compete hard. We did that today. \u00e2\u0080\u00a6<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\n\u00e2\u0080\u009cThe bonus is we beat some teams and got some (national at-large) points. The big bonus was we had weather we had to deal with. We got rain, we got cold, we got wind. I thought we handled it well.\u00e2\u0080\u009d<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nJunior David Forrester was the second FSU finisher, placing 18th (24:33), right in front of redshirt senior Seth Proctor (20th, 24:34) and junior co-captain Wes Rickman (23rd, 24:39). Sophomore Jakub Zivec was 29th in 24:47.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nA year ago, Proctor was the alternate on FSU\u00e2\u0080\u0099s NCAA runner-up team. Riding a strong track season, he has become a formidable cog in the Seminoles\u00e2\u0080\u0099 lineup.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\n\u00e2\u0080\u009cHe\u00e2\u0080\u0099s going to be pretty darn good,\u00e2\u0080\u009d Braman said of Proctor. \u00e2\u0080\u009cHe runs really under control and passes people along the way.\u00e2\u0080\u009d<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nZivec, the ACC Freshman of the Year in 2010, turned in what Braman described as, \u00e2\u0080\u009cone of his better races; right up there with ACC\u00e2\u0080\u0099s last year.\u00e2\u0080\u009d The Czech-born Zivec finished three spots in front of Clemson\u00e2\u0080\u0099s Ty McCormack, another sophomore, who won the Clemson Invitational two weeks ago.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\n\u00e2\u0080\u009cKnock on wood, we\u00e2\u0080\u0099re going to get better,\u00e2\u0080\u009d Braman said.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nOf course the individual story of the day was Fout, who held his own against Batty, who in April ran the fifth-fastest 1,500-meter time (3:36.25) in NCAA history. Batty began his collegiate career in 2005 \u00e2\u0080\u0093 it was deterred by a two-year mission \u00e2\u0080\u0093 and finished 15th at last year\u00e2\u0080\u0099s NCAA Cross Country Championships. Fout was 28th.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\nTo keep Batty and Cabral \u00e2\u0080\u0093 a five-time All-American \u00e2\u0080\u0093 within striking distance was no small feat.<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\n\u00e2\u0080\u009cTo stop and put a shoe back on \u00e2\u0080\u0093 that\u00e2\u0080\u0099s hard to run people down,\u00e2\u0080\u009d said Braman, who said Fout drew from a strong supporting contingent of friends and family from his hometown. \u00e2\u0080\u009cI\u00e2\u0080\u0099m really excited for Mike.\u00e2\u0080\u009d","date_added":"Nov 1st 2012, 3:48pm","nest":0,"liked":false,"member":[],"can_delete":false,"item_id":61477,"item_type":"news","pb_image":"\/\/www.runnerspace.com\/forum\/uploads\/av-17000.jpg","pb_title":"Freddie Lee Phillips","pb_url":"profile.php?member_id=17000","pb_url_dns":"https:\/\/FreddieLeePhillips.runnerspace.com\/","pb_wally_id":"357276"}},"last_id":"611578","url":"comments.php?item_type=news&item_id=61477&item_url=profile.php?member_id=17000"}