Air Force Splits For a Pair of Competitions
9/30/2010 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Sept. 30, 2010
After a weekend off from competition, the Air Force cross country team will return to action for a pair of competitions this weekend. On Saturday, Oct. 2, select members of the team will travel to Madison, Wis., to compete against some of the nation's top teams at the second-annual adidas Invitational, while the rest of the squad heads to Boulder, Colo., for the 25th running of the Rocky Mountain Shootout. The Rocky Mountain Shootout begins at 9 a.m. (MST), while the adidas Invitational is slated for an 11 a.m. (CST) start.
Meet Notes 03: at adidas Invitational; at Rocky Mountain Shootout 
MEET INFO: ADIDAS INVITATIONAL
The adidas Invitational, in its second year of competition, will feature 40 collegiate teams during both the men's and women's races (20 teams each). A combined 14 teams are ranked, while four are receiving votes. The Thomas Gibson Championship Course, launched in 2009, is located in Verona, Wis., adjacent to the University Ridge Golf Course. The women's 6K race will start at 11 a.m. (CST), while the men's 8K race is slated for an 11:45 a.m. start.
WHO'S WHO
The men's field features ranked teams from Wisconsin (6), Syracuse (11), Oklahoma (15), Michigan State (18), Providence (20), Princeton (23), Georgetown (24) and Indiana (25), as well as two teams - North Carolina, Ohio State - that are receiving votes. Also competing will be Air Force, Florida, Illinois, IPFW, Kansas, Marquette, Michigan, Nebraska, Purdue and Texas A&M. On the women's side, six teams are ranked, while two others are receiving votes. The women's field includes Air Force, Eastern Michigan, Florida (7), Harvard, Illinois, Indiana (RV), IPFW, Kansas, Marquette, Michigan (22), Michigan State (20), Nebraska (RV), North Carolina (29), Ohio State, Portland, Purdue, San Francisco, Syracuse (11), Texas A&M and Wisconsin (26).
MEET INFO: ROCKY MOUNTAIN SHOOTOUT
The Rocky Mountain Shootout, hosted by the University of Colorado and entering its 25th year, is one of the longest running collegiate cross country meets in the country. The host Buffs have won the last 19 men's titles and the last 11 women's titles. The Air Force men's team has finished second four times in the last eight years (2002-03-05-08). The men's 8000-meter race will kick off the day at 9 a.m. (MST) on the Buffalo Ranch Cross Country Course, while the women will follow with a 5,800-meter race at 9:45 a.m.
DIRECTIONS TO THE COURSE
Go west on U.S. 36 (from I-25 or I-270). Exit Table Mesa/South Boulder Road (via right at fork at off ramp). Left on Table Mesa (exit ramp light) go through first set of lights and proceed over bridge (U.S. 36). At the second light, take a left into the Buffalo Ranch entrance, also marked Rich's Tennis School.
WALMSLEY NAMED ACADEMY'S ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Following a first-place finish in the 295-competitor Woody Greeno Invitational, Jim Walmsley was named the Air Force Academy's Athlete of the Week, becoming the first male athlete to claim the award for the 2010-11 season.
WHAT A WEEKEND!
Jim Walmsley had a stellar competition at the Woody Greeno Invitational on Sept. 18. In the first 8K race of the season for the Falcons' squad, Walmsley clocked a team-leading time of 24:43.6 to win the meet, posted the 17th-fastest time ever at Pioneer Park and paced the Falcons to a third-place finish in the team standings.
MEN PLACE THIRD AT WOODY GREENO MEET
Four members of the men's team finished within the top 25, while all five scoring runners placed within the top 30, as the Falcons placed third in the team standings at the Woody Greeno Invitational on Sept. 18. Jim Walmsley won the meet, while Jeremy Drenckhahn placed 15th. Justin Tyner and Isaiah Bragg finished 24th and 25th, respectively, while Andrew Quallio rounded out the Falcons' top-five finishers with a 28th-place finish.
WARD PACES WOMEN TO THIRD-PLACE FINISH AT NEBRASKA
With an 11th-place overall finish (and third among University Division runners), Katherine Ward paced the women's team to a third-place finish in the team standings at the Woody Greeno Invitational on Sept. 18. Katie Carroll placed 14th, while Jen Bremser finished 17th. Morgan Mosby and Melissa Fuerst rounded out the scoring runners with respective 20th- and 22nd-place finishes.
COMING UP
The Falcons will have a weekend off from competition (Oct. 8) before splitting up again for a pair of competitions on Saturday, Oct. 16. Select members of the team will head to Terre Haute, Ind., for the prestigious Pre-Nationals Meet, while the rest of the team travels to Hays, Kan., for the annual Tiger Invitational.
Players Mentioned
