USI's Guy Wins NCAA Championship in 10,000 Meters
USI Sports Information
ALLENDALE, Mich.—University of Southern Indiana sophomore Johnnie Guy became the first USI men's runner in 16 years to win a national championship Thursday as he finished first in the 10,000 meters at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
Guy, who joins USI and Great Lakes Valley Conference Hall of Fame member Elly Rono as the only men's runners in school history to win a national title, finished the race in 29 minutes, 33.31 seconds, more than 10 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher, American International University's Michael Biwott.
Running in a packed group of around five or six competitors through the first seven kilometers, Guy broke away from the pack around the 20-minute mark and never looked back.
"I told Johnnie to make his move by the 7k mark if (top-seeded) Aaron Dinzeo hadn't made one," USI Head Coach Mike Hillyard said. "I figured that if Dinzeo hadn't made a move by then, he wasn't going to do so. But I also said if you make your move, it would have to be a strong one."
Guy, who was in second by what seemed to be inches in the three or four laps leading up to his move, broke away from the pack throughout the course of the next two minutes as he opened up about a 20-meter lead on second place.
"Johnnie's personal best in the 3,000 meters is 8:09," Hillyard said. "He ran the final 3,000 meters tonight in 8:14."
Being pushed by Biwott, who finished in 29:43.41, Guy continued to put separation between himself and the field, with only Biwott representing any real threat of taking away the national championship in the final four laps. Eventually, Guy raced away from Biwott as he captured the Screaming Eagles' first national title of any kind since USI's baseball team won the NCAA II championship in 2010.
Guy's win is the fourth national championship in the history of the USI men's cross country/track & field program and the ninth in school history. Rono won the 1997 national title in cross country before capturing the 1998 indoor title in the 5,000 meters and the 1998 outdoor title in the 10,000 meters.
USI's women have won three track & field championships, with Heather Cooksey capturing USI's first in the outdoor 3,000 meters in 2004. Candace Perry won the long jump the following year, while Mary Ballinger won the steeplechase in 2009.
In addition to baseball's 2010 national championship, USI's men's basketball team won the 1995 NCAA II title.
Guy also earns All-America accolades for the third time this season and the fifth time in his young career at USI. He also earned All-America honors in cross country last fall before earning another All-America honor in the indoor 5,000 meters in March. Guy garnered All-America honors in both the 5,000 and 10,000 meters last spring.
In addition to Guy, sophomore Tyler Pence finished ninth in the 10,000 meters Thursday night. Pence, who was in the lead pack throughout the first 5,000 meters, missed out on All-America accolades by less than 13 seconds as he finish in 30:14.29.
Sophomore Tyler Schickel advanced to the finals in the 1,500 meters as he finished sixth in the prelims Thursday with a time of 3:52.73. Senior Michael Callison saw his quest for an All-America honor come to an end Thursday as he finished 14th in the prelims of the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:20.72.
USI, which is currently tied for second in the team standings through three scored events, returns to action Friday at 3:30 p.m. (CDT) when junior Zach Watson competes in the high jump. Schickel competes in the finals of the 1,500 meters Saturday at 4:35 p.m., while Guy, Pence, and Schickel conclude USI's run at the NCAA II Outdoor Championship with the 5,000 meters Saturday at 7:05 p.m.