Runners compete in conference championships in Iowa

While IU students slowly awoke from Halloween weekend in Bloomington, the IU men's cross country team toed the line at the Big Ten Championships at the University of Iowa. \nRanked No. 13 before the race, IU was set to battle eight other teams for second place. Wisconsin, traditionally the class of the field, has perhaps its best lineup ever and ranks first in the country. The Badgers defended their title with a convincing 81-point win. \nIU scored 104 points and won the battle for second over Iowa, Minnesota and Michigan, who all tallied within four points of each other. Wisconsin sophomore Simon Bairu won his second straight Big Ten Cross Country Championship with a solid 23 minute, 45 second finish. \nIU's success depended on the performance of each of its runners. Holding up the front end were IU junior All-Americans Sean and John Jefferson. Sean led his brother by one second in 24:30, while John used a blistering finishing kick over the final two kilometers of the eight-kilometer race to nestle in right behind Sean in 24:31. Both Sean and John earned second team All-Big Ten honors.\n"Those guys are phenomenal," said recently graduated IU All-American Chris Powers, IU's second runner at last year's meet. "For John to get in shape so quickly this season after a year off is nothing short of remarkable."\nThird for IU was senior Tom Burns in 19th place, followed soon after by junior Stephen Haas in 24th.\n"Stephen started the race a little quicker than I did," Burns said. "But once we found each other we ran together."\nJunior Eric Redman rounded out IU's scoring in 45th place. Junior Billy Coale was IU's final finisher in 80th while junior Charlie Koeppen did not finish. \nIU's runner-up finish time improved on last year's second place and was their best since 2000's runner-up performance. Until Friday morning, IU anticipated a tough duel with Michigan for second. That morning presented the news that Michigan Olympian Nick Willis, the team's No. 2 cross country runner, would not compete due to injury, buoying the Hoosiers' confidence.\n"Willis is out," said Sean Jefferson at the time. "So we'd better beat them now."\nThe team did not disappoint and will look to carry its momentum through the Great Lakes Regional meet in two weeks. After the Regional, only the NCAA Championships remain. \nIU still has to sharpen its legs for the final push. IU's training style is well-adapted to the final part of the season. Both the Regional and National Championships are contested over 10,000-meters, a full mile and a quarter longer than the Big Ten race.\n-- Contact staff writer Rob DeWitte at rdewitte@indiana.edu.