Griffith gets All-American honors
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Drew Griffith wasn’t feeling his best. But he gave his best.
The Butler junior placed eight in the Champs National Championship cross country race — earning second team All-American honors — while shaking off an illness Saturday in San Diego, Calif.
Griffith was among 40 runners — the top 10 placers from four regionals — in the field for the 5,000-meter race.
“I woke up Friday with a high fever and a sore throat,” Griffith said. “For a while, I was concerned whether I’d be able to run on Saturday.
“But after a while, I figured, I’m at least going out there and finishing the race, no matter how I felt.”
Griffith admitted that the adrenalin surrounding the event “definitely helped ... and I was feeling OK once we were lining up to start the race.”
Griffith’s time was 15 minutes, 14.4 seconds. He finished only 2.6 seconds behind fifth-place finisher Connor Ackley of Hilliard, Ohio. The top five runners were first team All-American, the second five getting second team honors.
“Not feeling 100 percent and going out there and placing among the top 10 against the best in the country shows what kind of grit and determination Drew has,” Butler cross country coach Rick Davanzati said. “There’s a lot of toughness in that kid.”
Kole Mathison of Carmel, Indiana, won the race with a time of 14:56.1. No other runner broke the 15-minute mark.
Rocky Hansen of Hendersonville, N.C. — who had the fastest time in the four regionals — finished 11th in 15:22.
Accustomed to breaking out in front and gauging the race from there, Griffith ran among the second group of runners for the bulk of this race.
“He’s not used to that,” Davanzati admitted. “Everybody in that field likes to jump out front like Drew.”
“Two or three guys jumped into the lead during the first mile,” Griffith said. “I was in the next group, three or four seconds behind. The entire race, I had a good feel for where everybody was — those in front of me, next to me and behind me.
“My goal coming out here was to finish among the top 10. I was happy to be able to do that.”
Griffith and the other runners attended a luau party Saturday night to celebrate the event. All of the runners received a backpack, jacket, three shirts, a uniform and two pairs of shoes.
“We were treated so well. I loved this experience. My goal now is to get back here next year and try it again,” Griffith said.
Griffith was the first Butler runner to ever qualify for the Champs Nationals. The 40 runners Saturday represented 17 different states.
Davanzati said Griffith will take a month off before getting ready for the indoor track season.
“Since the beginning of last track season, he’s had maybe two weeks off,” the coach said. “Drew began training for cross country season in June and he’s put together a remarkable season.
“He needs to take some rest before we start building him back up again.”
Griffith agreed.
“Yeah, I need a little down time,” he said.
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