Falcons Set for MWC Championships
10/29/2008 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Oct. 29, 2008
The championship season begins this weekend for the Air Force cross country team, as it travels to San Diego, Calif., for the 2008 Mountain West Conference Championships. The meet, which will be held at Mission Bay Park, will feature six men's teams and nine women's teams. Action begins at 10 a.m. (PST) with the women's race and concludes at 11 a.m., with the men's event.
Weekly Release 07: at MWC Championships 
ABOUT THE MEET
The 2008 conference meet will be held at Mission Bay Park, the venue that hosted the 2008 USA Cross Country Championships and 2008 World Cross Country Team Trials. The women will participate on a 6K route, while the men will compete on an 8k course.
HISTORY 101
Last year, the men's team finished third at the conference meet - just one point out of second and only six points out of first. Matt Williams (fourth) and Ian McFarland (sixth) received first-team all-conference honors, while Josh Van Wyngaarden (10th) and Joe Curran (12th) were named to the second team. The women finished sixth and were paced by Brittany Morreale (22nd) and Katie Lynch (24th).
ALL-CONFERENCE ACCOLADES
Entering the 10th year of the MWC Championships, the Air Force men have accounted for eight first-team all-conference accolades and 13 second-team honors. The women have earned three second-team all-conference mentions. Ben Payne is the Falcons' only four-time all-conference selection, earning first-team honors in 2001 and 2003, while being named to the second-team in 2000 and 2002.
HISTORY 201
The men's team, which won the team championship in 2003, have accounted for four second-place finishes, three third-place finishes and one fourth-place finish. Ben Payne (2003) and Nick Wilson (2005) have recorded the team's top finish at the MWC, placing second in their respective years. The women finished third at the meet every year from 1999-03, with Rachel Smith earning the program's best finish (11th) in 1999.
SWEEP IT UP
Senior Scott Balcao and freshman Phaelen French swept the conference's weekly awards on Oct. 28, marking just the second time this season that the same school had captured the men's and women's awards. Balcao and French paced the Falcons in the 8K and 6K, respectively, at the regular-season finale.
MAKING A MARK
Scott Balcao and Phaelen French are the third and fourth Falcons, respectively, to be named a conference runner of the week this season, joining junior Brittany Morreale (Sept. 16) and senior Sebastian Ortiz (Oct. 14). The four Falcons to be honored by the MWC this year are tied for the most ever, matching the total first set in 2004.
BANKING ON BALCAO
With his second MWC Runner of the Week award of his career, senior Scott Balcao became only the third Air Force runner to claim more than one such award in his career. Balcao, who also earned the honor during the 2006 season, joins Chris Acs (2000, 01, 03) and Ben Payne (2001, 02, 03) as Falcons to earn more than one weekly award.
CLOSING OUT THE SEASON IN STYLE
With nine top-five finishes in four different races, the Falcons concluded the regular season on Oct. 24 at the Air Force Open. Juniors Andy Schweitzer (6K) and Becca Burditt (4K) finished first in their respective events, while senior Scott Balcao (8K) and freshman Phaelen French (6K) were the top finishing Falcons in their events. Schweitzer was named the Academy Athlete of the Week, while Balcao and French shared the Mountain West Conference Runner of the Week awards.
TOP TIMES FROM THE OPEN
Junior Andy Schweitzer won the 6K race in 20:38, while classmate John Oliphint finished second in 21 minutes flat. Fellow junior Conor Murphy picked up a fourth-place finish (21:21) as Air Force claimed three of the top-four spots. In the 8K race, senior Scott Balcao finished second (26:52), while freshmen Jonathan Rock (27:50, seventh) and Chase Welch (28:39, 10th) also finished within the top 10.
TAKING IT TO THE TOP
With a winning 4K time of 17:41, junior Becca Burditt was one of two Falcons to finish within the top-three. Sophomore Glorimar Torre' Santiago finished third in 18:16. In the 6K event, freshman Phaelen French finished third in 25:42, while classmate Alexa Ramsier placed fourth (25:46) and junior Danielle Snider finished fifth (26:17).
Players Mentioned
