Justin Tyner Heads to NCAA Championships
11/19/2009 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Nov. 19, 2009
Air Force junior Justin Tyner will represent the Academy at the 2009 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships on Monday, Nov. 21. The national meet, featuring 31 teams and 38 individual competitors, will take place on the LaVern Gibson Championship Course at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center in Terre Haute, Ind. The men's race will start at 12:08 p.m. (EST).
Meet Notes 09: at NCAA Championships (updated bio included) 
MEET INFORMATION
The men's 10K race kicks off the championship afternoon at 12:08 p.m. (EST), while the women's 6K race will follow at approximately 12:58 p.m. The races will be broadcast live on VERSUS, while there will also be a live web stream on NCAA.com.
HISTORY 101
Justin Tyner is the first Falcon to compete at the NCAA Championship meet since Matt Williams in 2007. The Falcons have sent full squads to the national meet 13 times, while being represented by individual runners an additional 11 years. Mike Ryan was the 1968 national champion, while Eric Mack was the top American finisher (third overall) at the 1995 championships.
HOW HE GOT THERE
Finishing fifth at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships on Nov. 14 with a career-best time of 30:30, Justin Tyner earned all-region honors and an automatic selection to the national meet. His finish, the best by an Air Force runner since Brian Dumm recorded the same placement in 2003, automatically qualified him to the national meet, as Tyner was the top finisher not on an advancing team.
TYNER TIDBITS
Justin Tyner has already raced on the championship course once this season, placing 21st out of 238 runners at the Pre-Nationals Meet in mid-October. He has paced the Falcons in four of five meets, including an all-conference performance (third overall) at the Mountain West Conference Championships. (A complete updated bio can be found on page two of this release)
FRONT PAGE NEWS
The recipient of three Air Force Athlete of the Week awards, Justin Tyner has spent more time on the front page of the Falcons' website than any other athlete.
MEN'S REGIONAL RECAP
With all five scoring runners placing within the top 50, the men finished sixth in the 17-team regional. That team placement is the second-highest finish for the Falcons since 2004. Air Force was paced by all-region honoree Justin Tyner, who placed fifth in 30:30. Senior Zach Nordahl finished 31st with a personal-best time of 31:26, while sophomores Jonathan Rock (31:43, 36th) and James Walmsley (31:50, 39th) made their collegiate 10K debuts. Senior Andy Schweitzer, also competing in his first 10K, rounded out the scoring runners with a 50th-place time of 32:06.
WOMEN'S REGIONAL RECAP
Seniors Ally Romanko and Katie Lynch paced the women to a 13th-place regional finish. Romanko finished 63rd in 22:40, while Lynch was right on her heels at 22:41 (64th). Sophomore Auriele Fain (22:59) finished 80th, while junior Katherine Ward (23:05) and freshman Kate Kanetzky (23:06) finished 84th and 85th, respectively. Sophomore Meghan Prinkey rounded out the scoring with a 94th-place time of 23:15.
Players Mentioned
