NOTRE DAME TRACK AND FIELD MEN'S DISTANCE MEDLEY TEAM TAKES SIXTH AT THE 2000 NCAA INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS

March 10, 2000

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT: Peggy Curtin
(219) 631-7516



(Fayetteville, Ark.) - - The Notre Dame men's distance medley team finished sixth and earned All-American status at the 2000 NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark., Friday night. The team, comprised of seniors Chris Cochran (Crystal Lake, Ill.), Tim Kober (Gillette, N.J.), Phil Mishka (Toledo, Ohio) and sophomore Luke Watson (Stillwater, Minn.), ran the medley in 9:38.82. The time was just off the school record of 9:38.15 that the team set just last weekend at the Alex Wilson Invitational.

Stanford took first place in 9:28.83, the fastest time ever run at the NCAA indoor championships. Notre Dame has sent three distance medley teams to the NCAA indoor championships, and the sixth-place finish this year is the highest since 1968.

The NCAA championship mark the end of an impressive indoor season for all four medley team members. Cochran won BIG EAST indoor titles in the 60 and 400 meters this season. Kober took third in the 500 and second in the 800 meters at the BIG EAST championships. Phil Mishka took second in the 1,000 meters at the BIG EAST meet and ran the fastest times for the Irish in the 600, 800, and 1,000 meters in 2000. Watson, the 1999 World Junior Cross Country Champion, finished third in the BIG EAST men's mile and was the top runner for the Irish in the 3,000 meters.

The outdoor track and field season will be next for all four athletes and their teammates. The season begins Friday, March 24 when both the men's and women's team travel to the Arizona State Invitational in Tempe, Ariz.

Men's Distance Medley Relay Final

1. Stanford 9:28.83
2. Alabama 9:30.10
3. Arkansas 9:33.31
4. Connecticut 9:33.85
5. Tennessee 9:35.24
6. Notre Dame 9:38.82
7. Northern Iowa 9:40.91
8. Arizona State 9:42.11
9. Georgetown 9:45.11
10. Florida 9:48.12

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