Two Wolfpack athletes who participate in both cross-country and track finished their seasons as All-Americans after strong performances at the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon. For both redshirt freshman Ryan Hill and senior John Martinez, their recent awards marked the second time in their careers that they have been recognized as All-Americans.
Martinez, who took 10th place Friday with a time of 8:53.33 in the 3000-meter steeplechase, also was recognized as an All-American in that event in 2008.
“I was pretty happy,” Martinez said. “I just wanted to go out and end on a positive note. Being in the finals, I also wanted to place higher. 8th place is probably the worst I wanted to do, of course I wanted to be top 5. It didn’t work out that way, but I am pretty happy looking back at it now.”
For Hill, who took seventh place in the country in the 5000 meters with a time of 13:53.99, his effort at the national championships was a fitting conclusion to an academic year in which he also earned 2009 All-American honors in cross country. After just one season with the Pack, Hill also holds the school records in the 5000, with a time of 13:44.36, and in the 1500 meters, with a time of 3:40.81.
“For any redshirt freshman to place seventh in the country, it is an outstanding day,” coach Rollie Geiger said. “He has had quite a year. He now holds the 1500 and 5000 meter school records basically in his first year. He has a bright future and we are looking forward to the next three years.”
Martinez said Hill impressed him all season with his talent and commitment.
“Ryan is just an incredible runner,” Martinez said. “For being so young, he is really on top of it. He works extremely hard and he is one of those guys who sets his goal early on and he does everything he can to reach it. He is a competitor and he is definitely a leader of the team now. Next year there will be a lot of older guys on the team, but a lot of guys already look up to him because he has such a strong personality and he has already accomplished so much.”
With three more years of track eligibility remaining, Hill’s success in Oregon has given his coach reason to believe he is capable of capturing a national championship.
“On any given day, once you get to a certain level, you have an opportunity to win a national championship,” Geiger said. “I think he will reach that level and have an opportunity and we will see what happens on race day.”
While Hill’s performance in Oregon let him know what it will take to eventually become a national champion, for Martinez, his 10th place finish gives him one last fond memory from a productive four-year career with the Pack.
“It is been fun to look back and know that I was really consistent,” Martinez said. “I am definitely going to miss it going on into the next part of my life. I will definitely cherish all the memories I had while running. I chose to come to N.C. State because of the winning tradition and coach Geiger and the record that he has. Being able to be a part of that was very special. Since I have been here, we won two conference titles and went to nationals four years. It was great.”
Geiger said he and the rest of the Wolfpack cross country and track teams will miss Martinez, a New York native, for the intensity and passion with which he competed.
“John’s from New York and he is a New York kind of kid,” Geiger said. “He is really a fighter and he takes that spirit to the track and it spills over to some of the other members of the team. We will all miss that element on race day, how competitive he was and how that carries over to his teammates.”
