Lobo runners, one missing a shoe and one a freshman, take 2nd at cross country national championships

As far as runner-up finishes go, Habtom Samuel might never claim one much better.

After losing his left shoe midway through Saturday’s final, New Mexico’s reigning All-American gritted through the men’s NCAA Cross Country Championship in 28:38.9 to claim his second national runner-up finish in as many years.

In the women’s race, UNM freshman Pamela Kosgei also finished second.

Harvard’s Graham Blanks surged over the final kilometer on the men’s 10k course in Madison, Wisconsin to win his second-consecutive national title in 28:37.2. Furman’s Dylan Schubert finished a close third behind Samuel in 28:39.6 while Arkansas’ Yaseen Abdalla (28:41.5) and Oklahoma State’s Brian Musau (28:44.9) rounded out the top five.

“The day, it’s not my day today,” Samuel told ESPN’s John Anderson in a post race interview. “But I’m so happy to finish (runner-up).”

That it was Samuel hanging with Blanks was hardly surprising — the sophomore from Eritrea is the only runner to beat Harvard’s Olympian in over two years, claiming a victory over Blanks at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals on Oct. 19. Both runners were considered to be among the favorites for Saturday’s final after Samuel notched a runner-up finish at NCAA Regionals last Friday.

Around the 5k mark, Samuel’s left shoe popped off during a congested turn on the Zimmer Championship Course. He turned to Musau and appeared to exchange words before forging on with the rest of the race.

“I (looked) back almost like, ‘can I grab my shoes maybe?’” Samuel told Anderson when asked about his conversation with Musau. “(But if) I look back and grab my shoes, the gap will be bigger. So he told me, just keep with this one.”

With a bloody foot, the reigning NCAA outdoor 10k champion hung toward the front of the pack and charged with 2,000 meters left before Blanks broke away for a course record-setting run.

UNM head coach Darren Gauson said he learned about Samuel’s lost shoe via text during the race, and credited him for turning in another “gritty” performance after falling during last week’s regional final.

“He really wanted to win, and he really wanted to win for New Mexico” head coach Darren Gauson told the Journal. “To have one shoe and do what he did for us and still be the runner-up is incredible. He’s just a great guy and really, really tough.”

As Samuel closed in on the finish line, he looked to the crowd, pointed to his bare left foot and pounded his chest. A long embrace with Blanks followed before the two swapped jerseys, something Gauson had never seen before.

“I’m a big soccer guy, and so is Habtom,” Gauson laughed, “so that was fun. Hopefully that starts a new tradition — on my Instagram, I (captioned Blanks and Samuel) as Messi and Ronaldo, you know, two of the greats.”

Samuel’s effort spearheaded a ninth-place team finish for the Lobos, and a program-best 272 championship points. Collins Kiprotich (35th, 29:22.6) and Evans Kiplagat (40th, 29:25.0) both placed in the top 50 for UNM while Rikus Van Niekerk (98th, 29:54.5) represented UNM’s fourth top 100 finish.

Vincent Chirchir (148th, 30:13.5), Lukas Kiprop (191st, 30:41.8) and Corne De Fouw (234th, 31:25.4) also finished Saturday’s final.

In the women’s 6k final, Kosgei finished in 19:27.8 to notch a runner-up finish of her own. The first-year collegiate runner from Kenya moved late to overtake Florida’s Hilda Olemomoi (3rd, 19:28.7) and anchor the Lobo women’s 14th-straight top 10 team finish in as many appearances.

Alabama’s Doris Lemngole (19:21.0) claimed her first cross country national title after finishing as the runner-up last year. Stanford’s Amy Bunnage (19:31.1) and North Carolina State’s Grace Hartman (19:39.5) finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

“(Kosgei) had a similar game plan to (Samuel), just sit in there, cover Doris and Hilda and going up the hill, we wanted to make a move,” Gauson said. “ … Doris is a heck of an athlete.”

Mercy Kirarei (35th, 20:01.3), Klara Dess (74th, 20:25.5) and Natalie Bitetti (91st, 20:29.3) all notched top 100 for UNM, which finished in seventh place. Tilly Simpson (118th, 20:39.8) and Christina Nisoli (132nd, 20:44.0) also finished in the Lobos’ return to the team final after a one-year absence.

“I’m just really proud, really happy for our women,” Gauson said. “I mean, when I came in here, we had like six women left on the team — we lost everybody. We really had to rebuild it completely.

“ … So to be seventh is just tremendous. I mean, we’re gonna be returning three All-Americans on the men’s side, three All-Americans on the women’s side (and) the goal is to win two championships and to win individuals. We love where we’re at,” he said.