SEC Cross Country Champion Homan and All-SEC Teammate Wanyoike Set for National Competition
November 21, 2003
AUBURN - Sophomore Angela Homan and senior Catherine Wanyoike will compete in the NCAA Cross Country Championships, in Waterloo, Iowa, on Nov. 24. The pair qualified for the championships when they finished third and sixth, respectively, at the NCAA South Regional Championships on Nov. 15. The women's 6K race kicks off at 12:15 p.m.
In every meet this season, Homan, the Delphos, Ohio, native led the Tigers over the finish line. In her first meet of the season, Homan won the individual title in the 2-mile race and led Auburn to a first place finish at the Chattanooga Invitational on Sept. 5.
She went on to capture her second individual crown, in a time of 9:55.40, at the Mississippi State Invitational in Starkville, Miss., on Oct. 25. For her performance at the MSU Invite she was named SEC Female Athlete of the Week.
At the Southeastern Conference Championships in Athens, Ga., on Nov. 3, Auburn finished fourth with Homan, once again, leading the group. She posted a time of 21:49.76 in the 6K race, which was good to bring home Auburn's first SEC individual champion.
Wanyoike, who was the lone representative from Auburn last season at the championships, is a native of Kiambu, Kenya. She was the second woman to cross the finish line for Auburn at every meet this season and finished in the top-10 at all six meets thus far.
Wanyoike saw two second-place finishes in 2003, beginning with the season opener at Chattanooga. She completed the 2-mile race in 11:37.
At the Mississippi State Invitational, she competed in the 4K (13:52.50), and helped lead the Auburn women to their second team title of the season. She was named All-SEC for the second consecutive year for her performance in Athens at the SEC Championships.
Wanyoike turned in her best time in the 6K at the NCAA South Regional, hosted by Auburn, where she came in sixth (20:57.35) and qualified to compete in her second and final NCAA Cross Country Championships.
Homan and two-time qualifier Wanyoike will join five other Auburn women that have represented the university at the women's NCAA Cross Country Championships. They join Alexis Hamblet, Nerissa Johnson, Janet Trujillo and two-time qualifier Rachel Sauder on the Auburn women's cross country list of national competitors.
Results from the championships will be available on www.ncaasports.com and www.unipanthers.com.