Falcons Travel to MWC Championships
10/28/2009 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Oct. 28, 2009
The Air Force cross country team begins the 2009 championship season this weekend, as its top nine runners travel to Orem, Utah, for the Mountain West Conference Championships on Saturday, Oct. 31. The meet, which is hosted by BYU, will feature six men's teams and nine women's teams. The two championship races will take place at the Cascade Golf Course.
Meet Notes: at MWC Championships 
MEET INFORMATION
The men's 8K race will take place at 10 a.m., while the women's 6K race will follow at 11 a.m. The racecourse winds through the first nine holes of the Cascade Golf Course.
HISTORY 101
The men's team won the conference championship title in 2003, while they have accumulated five second-place finishes and three third-place finishes. The only year the Falcons have not finished within the top three was 2002, when they placed fourth. The women placed third at the championship meet for the first six years of competing within the Mountain West Conference. Air Force has finished third during three of last four years.
HISTORY 201
Air Force's men have accounted for 31 all-conference selections, including 10 first-team selections. In all, 18 different Falcons have received all-conference accolades. Three members of the women's team have received all-conference honors.
LAST YEAR AT THE MWC CHAMPIONSHIPS: MEN
With all five scoring runners finishing within the top-20, the men finished second at the 2008 conference championship meet in San Diego, Calif. Then-seniors Sean Houseworth and Matt Williams finished seventh and eighth, respectively, to pace the Falcons to its sixth top-two finish in the conference's 10-year history.
RETURNING ALL-CONFERENCE PERFORMER
One of just two men to return to the conference championship meet, senior Zach Nordahl is a returning all-conference selection. Clocking a career-best time to place 14th, Nordahl garnered second-team honors.
LAST YEAR AT THE MWC CHAMPIONSHIPS: WOMEN
With a 21st-place finish, then-junior Katie Lynch led the Falcons' female runners to a sixth-place finish. Her time of 22:29 was the best on the team during the 2009 campaign. Auriele Fain, in her freshman season, was the second-fastest Falcon (31st), while then-juniors Ally Romanko and Katie Anderson rounded out the Falcons' top four.
CONFERENCE RANKINGS
Four members of the men's team are ranked within the conference's top 25. Justin Tyner is ranked 10th, while James Walmsley is ranked 15th. Zach Nordahl and Jonathan Rock round out the ranked Falcons at 23rd and 25th, respectively. On the women's side, three Falcons are ranked among the top-25. Ally Romanko leads the Falcons with a 21st-place time, while Auriele Fain and Katie Lynch are ranked 24th and 25th, respectively.
WILLARD PACES WOMEN IN "B" TEAM FINALE
Elyse Willard clocked a time of 24:18 to lead the women's team at the RMAC Open on Oct. 24. Finishing ninth, Willard was one of six Falcons to finish within the top half of the 50-runner race. Morgan Mosby clocked a time of 24:34 to finisher 12th, while Katie Carroll (25:24) finished 20th. Phaelen French and Dominique Amor finished 21st and 22nd, respectively, with matching time of 25:32, while Whitney Beck clocked a time of 25:54 to finish 25th.
QUICK QUALLIO
Pacing the Falcons with a 44th-place time of 28:28, Andrew Quallio was one of five Falcons to place within the top half of the 119-runner RMAC Open on Oct. 24. Donald Jackson (47th, 28:40) and Zak Boston (49th, 28:44) finished within the top 50, while Conor Murphy (55th, 29:04) and Matthew Cain (56th, 29:05) also finished within the top half of the field.
TYNER PACES MEN AT PRE-NATIONAL
Backed by Justin Tyner's 21st-place finish, the men's team finished 12th in the 34-team Pre-Nationals Meet on Oct. 17. All seven runners lowered their personal-best times during the annual race, which featured 12 teams either ranked or receiving votes in the national poll. James Walmsley finished 35th, while Zach Nordahl (64th) and Jonathan Rock (81st) also finished within the top 100.
ROMANKO LEADS THE WOMEN
Ally Romanko clocked the fastest time of the 6K season to pace the Falcons at the Pre-Nationals Meet on Oct. 17. Romanko finished 130th in the 249-runner race. Auriele Fain finished just five spots behind, while Katie Lynch placed 145th.
IT'S TYNER TIME
With a career-best time of 24:17, Justin Tyner placed 21st at the Pre-Nationals Meet on Oct. 17. That was the second highest finish of an individual not on a team receiving votes in the national poll. Tyner's time is a 33-second improvement over his previous best, which was set at last year's Pre-Nationals.
A FAMILY AFFAIR
The Rock family was well represented at Pre-Nationals on Oct. 17. Jonathan, an Air Force sophomore, placed 83rd in a field of 238 in the men's race, while his twin sister, Jen, paced her Loyola (Chicago) squad with a 141st-place finish.
Players Mentioned
