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Criterium and Omnium National Titles Awarded on Final Day of Competition in Fort Collins
Fort Collins, Colo. - The 2008 USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships concluded on Sunday as Lees McRae College claimed the overall Division I team title and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology won the overall Division II team championship. Eight individual titles were also awarded on Sunday as the three-day event closed with criterium racing in Old Town Fort Collins.
Lees-McRaeamassed 473 points to take the national title home to Banner Elk, N.C. Rival Fort Lewis College finished in second (424) and host Rams of Colorado State University (362) earned the third spot. After winning the women's DII team time trial and placing fourth in the men's race against the clock, MIT never looked back, using a balanced attack to score 394 points and win the DII team title. Last year's runner-up Dartmouth (365) repeated their performance, while 2007 winner Western Washington University (341) finished third. Overall team titles were awarded based point contributions from both men's and women's squads in the team time trial, road race and criterium contests.
A pair of Lees-McRae riders, Andrew Talansky and Carla Swart captured the individual Division I overall titles while Craig Leukens (Yale University) and Devon Haskell (University of Chicago) rode to overall wins in the Division II standings.
Both first time collegiate road omnium national champions, Talansky and Swart used road race wins and top ten finishes in Sunday's criterium to propel them to the overall individual honor and help their team to the title. Leukens, a recent Yale Divinity School graduate, was able to run away with the men's DII overall title after a second place finish in the road race and a criterium victory. The DII women's individual omnium race was much tighter with Haskell and Kendi Thomas (Whitman College) technically tying with 304 points apiece. With the number of first-place finishes acting as the tie breaker, Haskell was awarded the stars-and-stripes jersey due to her win in Saturday's road race competition.
Four individual criterium national championships were also awarded on Sunday with the DI women once again starting things off in Old Town Fort Collins. With the incredibly tight omnium competition going into the race, the top schools were scraping for every point, providing animation from the start in the 60-minute contest. Several top riders from leading schools Lees-McRae College and Fort Lewis College pushed the front, but it was Michigan's Julie Bellerose and Harvard's Anna McLoon who were able to get away halfway through the race. Although numerous attacks were mounted no one team took initiative to chase the leaders and Bellerose was able to outsprint McLoon to win the national championship ahead of a surging field. Swart and her Lees-McRae teammate, Kasey Manderfield were able to win the field sprint to earn valuable points for third and fourth places. Fort Lewis College was able to earn points for sixth place as Kristin McGrath finished just behind Colorado State University's Amanda Miller in fifth.
"I felt pretty good, so I thought I'd try to get away," explained Bellerose. "We could hear the splits, so knowing how close the field was we were working together with around 20-30 second pulls."
Dartmouth took the points for both first and third after the DII women's race came down to a field sprint to the finish. After being fairly quiet all day, Jen Stebbins (Dartmouth) turned it on in the finishing stretch to win the criterium national championship. Whitman's Kendi Thomas, repeated last year's performance, pulling in second, while Eve McNeal (Dartmouth) took third. The powerful MIT squad was however able to put two riders inside the top 10, helping assure them the DII team omnium national championship.
Colorado State University's own Phil Mann was able to repeat on last year's performance in the DI men's criterium by winning the field sprint to the finish. Despite several breakaway attempts nearly the entire field remained in tact on the technical eight-turn course. Steve Scholzen (University of Wisconsin - Madison) was barely taken at the line by Mann to earn second while last year's road race champion Alex Boyd (Midwestern University) took third. Road race and omnium champion Talansky was able to pull off a ninth-place finish and lock down the overall team omnium for Lees-McRae.
A mid-race breakaway filled with powerhouse riders was the story of the DII men's criterium. With Furman, Dartmouth and Yale putting two-riders in the break, team tactics were on display. A pair of groups were able to bridge up to the leaders, making a strong 14-man break. Even on the tough, technical course the group was able to stay away with Leukens turning it up on the last lap to take the stars-and stripes jersey.
"The course was very exciting," said Leukens, who was able to bridge up to the front mid-way through the race. "We weren't sure if a break could stay away with all the turns, but they were killing it so I knew I had to go."
In addition to the stars-and stripes national championship jerseys and the medals presented to all podium finishers, the USA Cycling Development Foundation will contribute a total of $5,000 to the top three programs in the final Division I and Division II team standings. As part the USA Cycling Collegiate Performance Awards program, Lees-McRae College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology will each receive $1,200, while runner-ups Fort Lewis and Dartmouth College will each receive $800 and Colorado State University and Western Washington University will each receive $500. Awards are provided to the collegiate club budget to be used for operational and developmental purposes. The winning teams were also awarded numerous prizes, including performance glasses courtesy of Habervision.
2008 USA Cycling Collegiate Road Nationals
May 9-11
Fort Collins, Colo.
For complete results, click here <https://www.usacycling.org/news/user/story.php?id=3599> .
To view photos from the event, click here <http://www.usacycling.org/gallery/album275> .
Division I Men's Criterium
1. Phil Mann (Colorado State University) 1:26.55
2. Steve Scholzen (University of Wisconsin - Madison) s.t.
3. Alex Boyd (Midwestern State University) s.t.
4. Joshua Lipka (University of New Hampshire) s.t.
5. Rodney Santiago (Pennsylvania State University) s.t.
Division I Women's Criterium
1. Julie Bellerose (University of Michigan) 57:06.5
2. Anna McLoon (Harvard University) s.t.
3. Kasey Manderfield (Lees-McRae College) +42.7
4. Carla Swart (Lees-McRae College) s.t.
5. Amanda Miller (Colorado State University) s.t.
Division II Men's Criterium
1. Craig Leukens (Yale University) 1:14:37
2. Spencer Beamer (Furman University) s.t.
3. Thomas Brown (Emory University) s.t.
4. Jason Sears (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) s.t.
5. Zak Grabowski (Colorado School of Mines) s.t.
Division II Women's Criterium
1. Jen Stebbins (Dartmouth College) 58:26.4
2. Kendi Thomas (Whitman) s.t.
3. Eve McNeill (Dartmouth) s.t.
4. Devon Haskell (University of Chicago) s.t.
5. Tela Crane (Western Washington University) s.t.
Division I Overall Results
1. Lees-McRae College 473
2. Fort Lewis College 424
3. Colorado State University 362
4. University of California - Davis 342
5. Stanford University 290
Division II Overall Results
1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology 394
2. Dartmouth College 365
3. Western Washington University 341
4. Colorado School of Mines 320
5. Yale University 283
Division I Men's Overall Results
1. Andrew Talansky (Lees McRae College) 244
2. Phillip Mann (Colorado State University) 223
3. Steve Scholzen (University of Wisconsin - Madison) 220
4. Joshua Lipka (University of New Hampshire) 208
5. Alex Boyd (Midwestern State University) 191
Division I Women's Overall Results
1. Carla Swart (Lees-McRae College) 281
2. Anna McLoon (Harvard University) 226
3. Julie Bellerose (University of Michigan) 209
4. Amanda Miller (Colorado State University) 208
5. Amy Dombroski (Fort Lewis College) 205
Division II Men's Overall Standings
1. Craig Leukens (Yale University) 310
2. Chris Butler (Furman University) 259
3. Zak Grabowski (Colorado School of Mines) 242
4. Ben Showman (United States Military Academy) 211
5. Spencer Beamer (Furman University) 202
DII Women's Overall Results
1. Devon Haskell (University of Chicago) 304
2. Kendi Thomas (Whitman College) 304
3. Jen Stebbins (Dartmouth College) 254
4. Martha Buckley (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) 217
5. Eve McNeill (Dartmouth College) 186
About USA Cycling
Recognized by the United States Olympic Committee and the Union Cycliste Internationale, USA Cycling is the official governing body for all disciplines of competitive cycling in the United States, including road, track, mountain bike, BMX and cyclo-cross. As a membership-based organization and sanctioning body, USA Cycling consists of 64,000+ members, including 57,000 competitive cyclists, 1,500 coaches, 4,000 student-athletes, 2,200 officials, 350 professional cyclists, and 200 certified mechanics. USA Cycling also sanctions 2,500 competitive and non-competitive organized cycling events throughout the United States annually, as well as 1,800 clubs and teams. Associations of USA Cycling include the United States Cycling Federation (road, track & cyclo-cross), the National Off-Road Bicycle Association (mountain bike), the BMX Association, the National Collegiate Cycling Association and the United States Professional Racing Organization. USA Cycling is also responsible for the identification, development, support and promotion of American cyclists through various athletic initiatives and programs including the USA Cycling National Development Team, the USA Cycling Women's National Team, the USA Cycling Junior Development Team, Talent Identification and Regional Development Camps, domestic and international race calendars, direct athlete funding and support programs, and educational camps and seminars. USA Cycling also fields and supports U.S. National Teams for various international events, including the Olympic Games, World Championships, Pan American Games, Continental Championship and World Cups across all levels and disciplines of competitive cycling. USA cycling further supports grass roots and locally-based initiatives through its 32 Local Associations and comprehensive network of licensed and certified coaches and officials. Additionally, USA Cycling conducts National Championship events for amateur and professional cyclists, awarding more than 600 national titles annually to men and women in junior, U23, masters, elite, professional and paralympic categories throughout the various disciplines of competitive cycling. To learn more about USA Cycling, visit www.usacycling.org <http://www.usacycling.org/> . For media-related or general inquiries, please contact USA Cycling Director of Communications, Andy Lee at 719-866-4867 or alee@usacycling.org <mailto:alee@usacycling.org> .
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