Falcons Take on Nation's Elite at adidas Invitational
10/12/2011 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Oct. 12, 2011
The Air Force cross country team concludes the regular season against some of the nation's elite collegiate competition on Friday, Oct. 14, at the third-annual Wisconsin adidas Invitational. The races, at an 8K distance for the men and a 6K distance for the women, will take place at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course in Madison, Wis. Action begins at 1:00 p.m. (CST).
Meet Notes 04: at Wisconsin adidas Invitational 
MEET INFORMATION
The field at the Wisconsin adidas Invitational features 40 men's teams and 42 women's programs. Of the 40 men's teams that will be competing, 20 are ranked in the USTFCCCA's top 30, while six additional squads, including the Falcons, are receiving votes. The 42-team women's field includes 19 nationally ranked teams, including seven of the nation's top 10, and three others that are earning votes.
AT THE SOUND OF THE GUN
The Wisconsin adidas Invitational gets underway at 1 p.m. (CST) on Friday, Oct. 14, with the women's 6000-meter race. The men's 8000-meter event will follow at 1:40 p.m. The day will also feature two B-Squad races, with the women's 6K at 2:20 p.m., and the men's 8K at 3:00 p.m.
THE MEN'S FIELD
The men's field includes No. 2 Wisconsin, No. 4 Stanford, No. 6 BYU, No. 7 Indiana, No. 9 NC State, No. 10 Oregon, No. 13 Northern Arizona, No. 14 Princeton, No. 16 Georgetown, No. 17 Minnesota, No. 19 Villanova, No. 21 Syracuse, No. 22 UCLA, No. 23 Arizona State, No. 24 Providence, No. 25 New Mexico, No. 26 Michigan, No. 27 Texas A&M, No. 28 Florida and No. 29 (tie) North Carolina, as well Air Force, Iowa State, Lamar, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Texas, which are all receiving votes in the coaches' poll. In addition, Arizona, California, Clemson, Georgia, Harvard, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Marquette, Michigan State, Nebraska, Purdue, Washington and William & Mary will also compete.
THE WOMEN'S FIELD
The women's field includes top-ranked Villanova, No. 2 Providence, No. 6 Stanford, No. 7 New Mexico, No. 8 Syracuse, No. 9 Iowa State, No. 10 California, No. 12 Oregon, No. 13 North Carolina, No. 14 Arizona, No. 15 Michigan State, No. 21 Minnesota, No. 22 Florida, No. 23 Iowa, No. 24 Washington, No. 25 Notre Dame, No. 27 BYU, No. 28 Princeton and No. 30 Clemson, as well as Indiana, San Francisco and Vanderbilt, which are all receiving votes in the coaches' poll. Air Force, Arizona State, Boston College, Georgia, Harvard, Illinois, James Madison, Kansas, Nebraska, Northern Arizona, NC State, Northwestern, Ohio State, Purdue, Stonybrook, Texas A&M, Toledo, UCLA, William & Mary and Wisconsin will also be competing.
DIRECTIONS TO THE COURSE
The Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course is located adjacent to University Ridge Golf Course at 9002 County Road. The course, which opened in 2009, features an exterior 2500-meter loop and an interior 1000-meter loop. Spectator parking is located at the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church and the West Madison Bible Church, with shuttle service available at both locations from 11 a.m., until one hour after the conclusion of the final race.
OWENS NAMED MW ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Gavin Owens was named the Mountain West Athlete of the Week for the first time in his career on Oct. 11, after clocking a career-best 8K time of 25:15.5 to finish 11th among 152 runners at the Fort Hays State Tiger Invitational on Oct. 8.
DID YOU KNOW?
Gavin Owens' MW Athlete of the Week award marked the fourth time this season that an Air Force runner has claimed the honor, as he joined Melissa Fuerst (Sept. 20) and Jim Walmsley (Sept. 13, Sept. 20). The four selections in 2011 ties an Academy record for the most weekly conference awards in a single season.
BLAIN LEADS WOMEN AT TIGER INVITATIONAL
Amanda Blain clocked a 5K time of 18:39 to finish 11th in the 99-runner race and pace the women to a second-place finish in the team standings at the Tiger Invitational on Oct. 8. Blain was one of three Falcons to place within the top 10 as Adrianna Dong and Taylor Drolshagen finished ninth (18:43) and 10th (18:45), respectively.
WHAT A FINISH
With all five scorers placing within the top 20, the women placed second in the 16-team field at the Tiger Invitational on Oct. 8, trailing only Friends University, which is ranked seventh in the national polls of the NAIA. Air Force also bettered their Division I opponents by almost 50 points.
A BUNCH OF BLUE
Annette Eichenberger, who rounded out the scoring runners with a 19th-place finish, sparked a flurry of Air Force runners at the finish line, as Falcons claimed five of the next seven spots. Tasha Mayne and Alexa Ramsier finished 20th and 21st, respectively, while Emily Hazen took 23rd and Stephaney Saari finished 25th.
FINISHING STRONG
In addition to Gavin Owens' 11th-place finish, all five scoring runners finished within the top 30 of the 152-runner race at Fort Hays State. Dan Bailey placed 15th, while Seth Pelletier and Cameron Edwards finished 22nd and 24th, respectively. Nick White rounded out the field with a 30th-place finish.
AIR FORCE TEAMS UP WITH MISSION PARTNERS
The Falcons participated in a Mission Partner Initiative on Oct. 3, as the three elements of Academy life - military, academics and athletics - came together for a dinner hosted by Brig Gen Richard Clark, the Academy's Commandant of Cadets. The cross country team (athletics) was joined at Otis House by Cadet Squadron 32 (military) and the Department of Computer Science (academics).
Photo Gallery from Mission Partner Event
WHAT'S AHEAD
The Falcons are off from competition next weekend, as they gear up for the postseason, which begins on Saturday, Oct. 29, with the Mountain West Cross Country Championships in Fort Collins, Colo.
Players Mentioned
