Cinnaminson’s Austin Gabay placed 8th out of more than 200 runners Friday and Butler placed a strong 3rd at the NCAA Division 1 Great Lakes Regional Championship.
Butler, ranked 21st in Division 1, finished behind only No. 19 Notre Dame and No. 9 Wisconsin. Notre Dame won with 70 points, Wisconsin scored 82 and Butler 104, beating Michigan State on a 6th-runner tiebreaker.
Gabay was in 23rd place at 7K in 20:47.9, so he covered the last 3K in 8:40.4.
Gabay ran 29:28.3 on the 10,000-meter course at Silver Creek Metro Park in Norton, Ohio, about 35 miles south of Cleveland.
Gabay’s previous 10K PR was 29:58.4 last year at the Southeast Regional in Spartanburg, S.C., competing for Duke.
Most college races are held at 8K, and Gabay’s 8,000 PR is 23:36.6 from a meet last month in Chicago. He ran a faster pace Friday for an extra 1.24 miles. He probably came through 8,000 meters in 23:50 or so before running the final 1,000 in about 2:38.
The top two teams in each of nine regions automatically qualify for NCAA Championships Nov. 23 at the Thomas Zimmer Course at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. Thirteen other schools will receive at-large bid to nationals.
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 