Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, October 27, 1993 TAG: 9310270009
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR.
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Of course, Hausenfluck, Radford University's cross country star, covers ground a lot faster, although there are times when he believes that running is about as exciting as watching grass grow.
"I don't think I would just run and not race," said Hausenfluck, a senior from Winchester. "I don't run unless it's competitively."
All season, Hausenfluck has out-run the competition. He has won all four races in which he has competed this year, and he will be the favorite to win the Big South Conference championship this weekend on the Highlanders' 5-mile home course.
Hausenfluck almost surely will qualify for the NCAA Regionals at Greenville, S.C., and he has a shot at going on to the NCAA championships. Then, his competitive running days may be over.
"I always said I wasn't going to run anymore [after college], Hausenfluck said. "Now, I'm thinking I might run some 10K [kilometers] or maybe a marathon."
It's hard to imagine Hausenfluck walking away from running. Hausenfluck has posted first-place finishes in the First Union Invitational in Charlotte, the Retriever Invitational in Baltimore, the Radford Invitational, and the Furman Invitational in Greenville, S.C.
"Things have been going well this year," he said.
Radford, which used to be the Big South's cross-country powerhouse, will battle with prerace favorite Liberty, Campbell and Coastal Carolina for the conference championship.
Despite missing all of last season with tendinitis in his knee, Hausenfluck has improved upon his performances from 1991, when he came to Radford after being a junior college All-American at Brevard (N.C.) College.
He finished second in the Big South to Liberty's Bill Khan that year in a close race that saw Hausenfluck make up 30 seconds in the final two miles before Khan edged him out for the title.
"He out-kicked me," said Hausenfluck, who had virtually nothing left down the stretch after nearly catching Khan. "I almost had to walk across [the finish line]."
Unfortunately, Hausenfluck won't have the chance to meet Khan in a rematch. Khan, who repeated as Big South champ last year, is out this season with an injury.
Hausenfluck has dealt with nagging injuries of his own. He missed a race a week ago in order to rest up for this weekend's meet.
A Big South championship would be one of his highest achievements since he decided to give up wrestling and playing baseball in high school to concentrate on track.
"Looking back, I wonder what I could have done in baseball," he said. However, "running has offered me quite a few rewards."
\ ALL-AMERICAN FOREIGNER: The women's basketball team boasts a non-American All-American on its roster this season. Nicole Gardiner, a junior transfer from New Zealand by way of Casper (Wyo.) Junior College, was named an honorable mention National Junior College Athletic Association All-American by Street & Smith magazine.
Gardiner, a 5-foot-11 forward, averaged 15.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in helping Casper to a 25-2 record last year.
Gardiner and Radford senior center Samantha Gilbert, a fellow New Zealander, were teammates on the 1991-92 Casper team that went 33-2 and ended the season ranked No. 7 in the nation.
\ HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHTS: Former All-America soccer player Dante Washington, who put his playing career on hold when he took an office job with World Cup U.S.A. a couple of months ago, now has hopes of playing in the World Cup. Washington joined the U.S. national team last week and saw extensive action in two matches against the Ukraine. . . .
The men's basketball program received an official visit from Jared Stinson, a 6-foot-4 guard from High Point High School in Beltsville, Md. Stinson, who attends High Point High School in Beltsville, Md., is the third player to visit Radford this fall. The other two - 6-9 Eric Parker of Decatur, Ga., and 6-7 Kevin Robinson of Richmond - verbally committed to the Highlanders and are expected to sign Nov. 10-17. . . .
Freshman soccer player Chris Evans, who helped lead Blacksburg to the 1993 Group AA state championship, is redshirting at Radford this fall. Evans claimed all-state honors and was named the co-player of the year in the New River District and Region IV last spring.
Ralph Berrier Jr. covers sports for the Roanoke Times & World-News' New River Valley bureau.
by CNB