TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — Freshman John Moore’s first ever NCAA Championship race placed him 86th with a time of 32:26.7. Moore was the lone Pilot to race the 10k race at this year’s championships.

“John did a great job,” said head coach Rob Conner. “He was a little disappointed with his race afterward, but for a freshmen to place in the top 100 is fantastic! I figured he could be anywhere from about 60th to 150th. He was only 24 seconds from the last All America award which is only 120 meters over a 6.2 mile race. That is pretty close.

“John worked really hard to get to this level,” continued Conner. “Now that he knows what it is like, he is excited to work even harder and that is exciting!

“The course was really soft and muddy,” noted Conner. “We had a nice sunny day which was great, but it rained overnight and it really slowed everyone down. John is a very efficient runner, so the mud wasn’t much of a problem for him.”

The Colorado Buffaloes captured its second-ever NCAA Division I Championship by placing three runners in the Top 25, posting a four point win over Wisconsin at the LaVern Gibson Cross Country Course hosted by Indiana State University. Brent Vaughn paced Colorado in fourth, finishing the 10K course in a time of 30:49. Bret Schoolmeester was fifth in the race with a time of 30:57. Other Colorado scorers were Jon Severy in 15th with a time of 31:27; Stephen Pifer in 31st with a time of 31:57; and James Strang in 35th with a time of 32:00.

Wisconsin, who came into the national title race ranked No. 1 in the MONDO Division I Cross Country Poll, finished a close second, scoring 94 points. The Badgers were paced by Simon Bairu who won the Individual National Championship with a time of 30:37.7. The course record held by 2002 National Champion, Jorges Torres, at 29:04.7 was not threatened due to the sloppy course conditions after a steady overnight and early morning rain.

Individually, Matt Gonzales of New Mexico was second with a time of 30:40.9. Arkansas’ Josphat Boit was third with a mark of 30:41.8.

This year marked the second time that the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships have been hosted by Indiana State University, with the first in 2002. The event will return to the LaVern Gibson Cross Country Course in both 2005 and 2006.