Falcons Travel to NCAA Regional Championships
11/11/2008 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Nov. 11, 2008
The Air Force cross country team will travel up Interstate-25 to Fort Collins, Colo., for the 2008 NCAA Mountain Region Championships at the Collindale Golf Course on Saturday, Nov. 15. The meet, which will feature the top teams in the region, is slated to begin at 11 a.m. (MST) with the women's race.
Weekly Release 08: at NCAA Mountain Regional Championships 
ABOUT THE MEET
The 2008 NCAA Mountain Regional Championships will be held at the Collindale Golf Course in Fort Collins. The women's race will begin at 11 a.m. and the men will follow at 11:45 a.m.
HISTORY 101
The men picked up a sixth-place finish at the 2007 NCAA Regionals, highlighted by All-Region performances from Matt Williams (19th) and Ian McFarland (20th). The sixth-place team finish was the best by the Falcons since 2004. On the women's side, Air Force finished 16th, behind a pair of top-60 finishes from Katie Anderson and Brittany Morreale.
ALL-REGION ACCOLADES
Last year, Matt Williams shaved nearly a second off of his personal-best 10K time (31:07), as he claimed his first all-region accolade with a 19th-place finish. Placing one spot behind Williams at 20th, then-senior Ian McFarland also earned all-region honors with a career-best time of 31:09.
HISTORY 201
In 1990, the Air Force men finished second at the regional meet - its best finish ever. The Falcons have also accounted for three third-place finishes, including back-to-back placements in 2003-04. Air Force has earned 21 top-10 finishes in the past 31 years. Since joining the NCAA Division I level in 1996, the women have recorded four top-10 finishes, highlighted by a sixth-place standing in 2002.
AIR FORCE NAMES NEW XC COACH
Juli Henner, a member of the 1996 U.S. Olympic Team, was chosen as the head coach of the Air Force cross country team. In addition to her duties with the Falcons' cross country program, Henner will serve as an assistant coach for the Air Force track and field team, working primarily with the Falcons' middle distance and distance runners. She will begin her coaching duties at the conclusion of the 2008 national championship meet.
MEN TAKE SECOND AT MWC MEET
With all five scoring runners finishing within the top-20, the men picked up a second-place finish at the MWC Championships on Nov. 1. Seniors Sean Houseworth and Matt Williams paced the Falcons with respective seventh- and eighth-place finishes. Junior Zach Nordahl placed 14th, while sophomore Justin Tyner (16th) and senior Daniel Castle (17th) rounded out the scoring field.
ALL-CONFERENCE TRIO
Sean Houseworth, Matt Williams and Zach Nordahl were named to the all-conference team following their placement at the Mountain West Conference Championships. Houseworth was named to the first-team, while Williams and Nordahl were placed on the second-team. It was the third career honor for Williams (second-team 2006, first-team 2007) and the first such honor for Houseworth and Nordahl.
WOMEN FINISH SIXTH
In her first season on the cross country team, junior Katie Lynch led the women's team to a sixth-place finish in the team standings. Lynch, the 21st runner to cross the finish line, posted a new season-best time (22:29) for the Falcons in the 6K event. Freshman Auriele Fain finished 31st, while juniors Ally Romanko and Katie Anderson placed 41st and 44th, respectively. Freshman Meghan Prinkey rounded out the Air Force scoring contingent with a 50th-place finish.
TAKING IT BACK
Air Force collected 62 total points for its fifth second-place finish in the 10-year history of the Mountain West Conference championships. The Falcons edged New Mexico by two points, swapping the outcome of the 2007 meet, when the Lobos took second-place from the Air Force by a mere point.
