Jessica Drop Earns All-America Certificate At NCAAs
November 23, 2019 | Cross Country
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. --- Georgia senior Jessica Drop finished 40th at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in Terre Haute, Ind., on Saturday to earn the second All-America certificate of her career in the sport during the final meet of her career.
Individual & Team Finishes: Drop ran a 20:48.4 to grab the final spot for All-America honors on the 6k course at the LaVern Gibson Course in light rain with temperatures in the mid 30s. Drop's twin sister, Samantha, took 45th (20:54.3) during her junior season after redshirting the 2018 campaign.
Samantha took 30th for an All-American finish in 2017 while Jessica was 31st for her first certificate. The entire Lady Bulldog team advanced two years ago and where 17th overall.
New Mexico junior Weini Kelati (19:47.5) picked up a 10-second victory to be the women's individual champion while Arkansas (96) edged BYU by six points for the team national title. On the men's side, senior Edwin Kurgat (30:32.7) won the NCAA individual crown and BYU (109) won the men's team title.
Cunniff's Comments: "I am incredibly proud of how the girls ran today," said Bulldog distance coach Patrick Cunniff. "It was muddy, it was nasty and both girls ran gritty races. They were both smart enough to be patient early and then came forward and finished very well. Sam made a great effort after being near the back of field to shoot up 46 spots in the last 2k. This was truly the best field in NCAA history and I am proud how Jess finished her career against this competition. She had a stellar cross country career and we are excited to see what Sam can do in her final season next year."
The Lowdown: Jessica positioned herself in 142nd after the first 2k and began to work her way through the 249-woman field. By the 4k mark, the Durham, Conn., native was all the way at 35th with the front packs in striking distance. She held on for 40th and will now get ready for the coming 2020 track seasons.
"I am really excited to finish as an All-American," said Jessica Drop, who was 77th as an individual at last year's NCAA Championships. "I had no idea what to expect from this race and I was proud of the way I finished. This is not the first time I have run in these conditions and it was a little tougher going around the mud. But it was cross country weather and cross country conditions for my last race so I guess that's kind of fitting."
Samantha had slipped all the way to 182nd during the first third of Saturday's race. Battling through the rain and mud, she surged to 91st at the 4k mark as she continued to catch pack after pack and move up in the field. Samantha cut that position in half during the final 2000 meters to come within striking distance of the top 40.
"It is always disappointing when you get so close to All-America honor but miss them," said Samantha Drop. "But I was happy with the way I was able to move up and finish where I did. I was able to see Jess finish and that was great to see since it was her final cross race. This race motivates me for next year and hopefully we will have a team of girls who have the same motivation."
Keeping Up With The Dogs: Updates from Georgia's track and field and cross country teams can always be found on Twitter/Instagram (UGATrack).
Individual & Team Finishes: Drop ran a 20:48.4 to grab the final spot for All-America honors on the 6k course at the LaVern Gibson Course in light rain with temperatures in the mid 30s. Drop's twin sister, Samantha, took 45th (20:54.3) during her junior season after redshirting the 2018 campaign.
Samantha took 30th for an All-American finish in 2017 while Jessica was 31st for her first certificate. The entire Lady Bulldog team advanced two years ago and where 17th overall.
New Mexico junior Weini Kelati (19:47.5) picked up a 10-second victory to be the women's individual champion while Arkansas (96) edged BYU by six points for the team national title. On the men's side, senior Edwin Kurgat (30:32.7) won the NCAA individual crown and BYU (109) won the men's team title.
Cunniff's Comments: "I am incredibly proud of how the girls ran today," said Bulldog distance coach Patrick Cunniff. "It was muddy, it was nasty and both girls ran gritty races. They were both smart enough to be patient early and then came forward and finished very well. Sam made a great effort after being near the back of field to shoot up 46 spots in the last 2k. This was truly the best field in NCAA history and I am proud how Jess finished her career against this competition. She had a stellar cross country career and we are excited to see what Sam can do in her final season next year."
The Lowdown: Jessica positioned herself in 142nd after the first 2k and began to work her way through the 249-woman field. By the 4k mark, the Durham, Conn., native was all the way at 35th with the front packs in striking distance. She held on for 40th and will now get ready for the coming 2020 track seasons.
"I am really excited to finish as an All-American," said Jessica Drop, who was 77th as an individual at last year's NCAA Championships. "I had no idea what to expect from this race and I was proud of the way I finished. This is not the first time I have run in these conditions and it was a little tougher going around the mud. But it was cross country weather and cross country conditions for my last race so I guess that's kind of fitting."
Samantha had slipped all the way to 182nd during the first third of Saturday's race. Battling through the rain and mud, she surged to 91st at the 4k mark as she continued to catch pack after pack and move up in the field. Samantha cut that position in half during the final 2000 meters to come within striking distance of the top 40.
"It is always disappointing when you get so close to All-America honor but miss them," said Samantha Drop. "But I was happy with the way I was able to move up and finish where I did. I was able to see Jess finish and that was great to see since it was her final cross race. This race motivates me for next year and hopefully we will have a team of girls who have the same motivation."
Keeping Up With The Dogs: Updates from Georgia's track and field and cross country teams can always be found on Twitter/Instagram (UGATrack).
