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2002
Cross Country |
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the DQ - HS Boys Race of Championsby John Dye Original top 10 runners across the finish line:: 1. Bobby Curtis, St. Xavier Louisville KY 15:25.5
The first sign of trouble at the finish line came when five runners crossed and no one else was in sight. More than a minute went by before the 6th runner appeared. Then confusion reigned. As reporters were interviewing the apparent winners -- Bobby Curtis individually and The Woodlands TX as a team -- coaches of Mountain View UT and Hilliard Davidson OH were shouting that the early finishers cut the course and there should be a DQ.
We asked Mountain View coach Dave Houle about this, and he said he noticed in the college races Friday night that runners were confused at that point. So he took his whole team to that spot and told them to be sure to go straight ahead and make the final loop before turning for home. That paid off because the 6th runner was from Mountain View, and he led the rest of the runners on the right course.
Meet founder Rick Hill said that meet director Fred Finke took the coaches involved to the area of the wrong turn and all agreed that the first five runners cut the course. Under the rules, Hill said, Finke decided to disqualify the five runners. This threw the championship to Mountain View, with Davidson moving up to second. Even without their first two runners, The Woodlands was third, 77 points ahead of 4th place Kingwood TX. Here is how the scoring would have been with the first 5 runners included: 1. The Woodlands 58 (3-5-13-18-19) Here is the result after the disqualification: 1. Mountain View 125 (1-3-28-44-49)
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