Texas won the South Central Regional Championship on Saturday, which guarantees the Longhorns a berth in the NCAA Championships in two weeks.

“The whole team was really excited about today’s race, and it was definitely something we knew we were capable of and it was great to beat a lot of really good teams,” said junior Rory Tunningley.

Freshman Craig Lutz continues to have a strong season as he finished third with a time of 30:48.2. Close behind Lutz was sophomore Ryan Dohner whose time of 30:48:2 was good for fifth.

“When you are working with a teammate, it is a lot easier to mentally stay with it for the entire race,” Dohner said.
Overall, Texas finished with 40 points, which was 16 more than second place Texas A&M. Arkansas, Lamar and UTSA rounded out the top five.

Lutz and Dohner led the team, but three other runners helped the Longhorns take first place. Tunningley’s ninth place finish gave Texas three top 10 runners. Freshman Mark Pinales and senior Brock Simmons finished 13th and 14th overall. Having three runners in the top 15 gave the Longhorns the overwhelming lead.

Texas will finish the season next Monday at the
NCAA Championships in Terre
Haute, Ind.

Printed on Monday, November 14, 2011: Texas earns NCAA tournament berth