Nov. 24, 2008
From Navy Sports Information
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - Navy women's cross country runner Amy Watson (Jr./Hampstead, Md.) finished 153rd out of 252 runners at the NCAA Championship on the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course on Monday.
Watson completed the 6k championship course in 21:37, just seconds off her career-best time despite windy and damp conditions with temperatures hovering around 40 degrees. She finished two minutes behind Texas Tech's Sally Kipyego, who won the NCAA individual title for the third-straight time - a first in women's cross country history.
"I am extremely proud of Amy. She is a great racer that is very strong mentally," stated Navy head coach Karen Boyle. "The race got off to a very fast start - somewhere around 3:10 after the first 1,000 meters. Her training time missed due to the injury earlier this fall didn't allow her to have the same depth as the others runners. However, she put up a very respectable time and that speaks to the competitive fire she has."
"This was a pretty good experience for me," said Watson. "Prior to this race, I had never run against this level of competition. It was pretty unforgiving out there. This will help me be ready for the next time."
Watson became the fifth Navy runner in program history to compete at the NCAA Division I Championship. She joined the exclusive group of Melissa Foon (2000), Rebecca Cline (1997), Jackie Hayes (1995) and Kerry O'Neill (1992) to represent the Midshipmen on the national stage.
