Falcons Travel to Mountain West Championships
10/25/2011 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Oct. 25, 2011
The Air Force cross country team opens the championship season this Saturday (Oct. 29), as its top runners travel to Fort Collins, Colo., for the 2011 Mountain West Cross Country Championships. The meet will feature six men's teams and eight women's teams. The two championship races, which begin at 10:00 a.m., will be held at Colorado State's Collindale Golf Course.
Meet Notes 06: at MW Championships 
| Updated Men's Stats | Updated Women's Stats
MEET INFORMATION
The Mountain West Cross Country Championships will take place throughout Collindale Golf Course (1441 East Horsetooth Road) in Fort Collins, Colo. The men's 8000-meter championship race will kick off the day at 10 a.m., while the women's 6000-meter race is slated for an 11 a.m. start. The award ceremony will follow at noon. Spectator parking is available in the main parking lot at Collindale Golf Course.
WHO'S WHO
All eight conference schools - Air Force, Boise State, Colorado State, New Mexico, San Diego State, TCU, UNLV and Wyoming - field a women's team, while six programs - Air Force, Boise State, Colorado State, New Mexico, TCU and Wyoming - feature a men's team. The New Mexico women are currently ranked 20th in the national rankings.
CONFERENCE RANKINGS
Entering the conference championship meet, Air Force holds two of the four fastest times in the Mountain West. Jim Walmsley is currently ranked second with a season-best 8K time of 24:15.3 at the Woody Greeno Invitational, while Jeremy Drenckhahn is ranked fourth with his adidas Invitational time of 24:23.0. Andrew Quallio is ranked 12th in the conference with a time of 25:04.0 (adidas Invitaitonal). On the women's side, Melissa Fuerst is ranked eighth in the 6K distance with her time of 21:10.0 from the adidas Invitational and Jen Bremser is ranked 10th with her time of 21:34.2 at the Woody Green Invitational.
HISTORY 101
The men won the conference championship title in 2003, while they have accounted for five second-place finishes and five additional third-place scores. The only year that the Falcons have not finished within the top three was in 2002, when they placed fourth. The women placed third at the championship meet during each of the first six years of competing within the Mountain West. With a fourth-place finish last season, Air Force matched its best team finish since 2003.
HISTORY 201
Air Force's men have accounted for 35 all-conference selections, including 13 first-team accolades. In all, 20 different Falcons have earned all-league honors. Four women have also received all-conference awards.
LAST YEAR AT THE MWC CHAMPIONSHIPS
Justin Tyner (second-place) and Jon Rock (sixth) earned all-conference honors for the men, while Katherine Ward (13th) became the first member of the women's program since 2005 to earn all-MWC honors. Juli Benson was named the men's Head Coach of the Year by her peers, while the Falcons finished third with four of the five scoring runners placing within the top 20. With four of the five scoring runners placing within the top 30, Air Force finished fourth to match its best team finish since 2003.
DRENCKHAHN NAMED MW ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Jeremy Drenckhahn was named the Mountain West Athlete of the Week on Oct. 18, marking the second time in his career that he has claimed the league's weekly honor. Drenckhahn earned the honor after recording a career-best 8K time of 24:22.2 to finish 36th in the 270-runner field at the adidas Invitational on Oct. 14.
DID YOU KNOW?
Jeremy Drenckhahn's award on Oct. 18 marked the fifth time this season that an Air Force runner has been named the MW Athlete of the Week. The five selections in 2011 - Jim Walmsley (Sept. 13, Sept. 20), Melissa Fuerst (Sept. 20), Gavin Owens (Oct. 11) and Drenckhahn (Oct. 18) - is a new Academy record for the most weekly awards in a single season.
MOVING UP
The women moved up one spot in the USTFCCCA Regional Rankings on Oct. 17, going from 13th to 12th. That ranking matches the best weekly standing for the women this season - and its best since the 2009 preseason.
DRENCKHAHN AND WALMSLEY PACE FALCONS AT WISCONSIN
Jeremy Drenckhahn and Jim Walmsley finished within just two seconds of one another at the adidas Invitational, placing 36th (24:22.2) and 38th (24:24.3), respectively. Drenckhahn, who shaved 20 seconds off of his previous best 8K time, was one of two runners to "PR" in Wisconsin, as Andrew Quallio tallied a personal-best time of 25:03.3 to place 142nd. Matt Bell (203rd, season-debut 24:34.8) and Isaiah Bragg (241st, 26:17.2) rounded out the scoring runners, as Air Force finished 30th in the team standings.
FUERST GUIDES WOMEN AT ADIDAS INVITATIONAL
Two Falcons recorded career-best times at the adidas Invitational on Oct. 14. Melissa Fuerst improved her 6K time by 14 seconds (21:09.2) to pace the Falcons with an 86th-place finish, while Heather Connick clocked a career-fast time of 22:11.4 to finish 232nd. Kate Kanetzky (211th, 21:57.5), Jen Bremser (248th, 22:20.2) and Morgan Mosby (265th, 22:31.2) rounded out the scoring field for the Falcons, who placed 41st in the team standings with 1,042 points.
WHAT'S AHEAD
The Falcons will travel to Orem, Utah, on Saturday, Nov. 12, for the 2011 NCAA Mountain Regional Championships. The men's 10K race and the women's 6K event will take place at the Cascade Golf Center.
Players Mentioned
