Air Force Opens Season at Fresno State Invitational
9/3/2014 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
The Air Force cross country team kicks off a new era this Friday (Sept. 5), as first-year head coach Ryan Cole takes the Falcons to Fresno, Calif., for the season-opening Fresno State Invitational at Woodward Park. The meet is slated to begin at 8:00 a.m. (PST).
Meet Notes 01: at Fresno State Invitational 
MEET INFORMATION
The Fresno State Invitational will take place at Woodward Park in Fresno, Calif., on Friday, Sept. 5. The men will complete a 6000-meter course, beginning at 8:00 a.m. (PST), while the women's 4000-meter race will follow at 8:45 a.m. The overall field of teams includes several conference opponents, including Fresno State, San Jose State and the women's team from UNLV.
WE'LL BE BACK
The course for the Fresno State Invitational - Woodward Park - will also host the 2014 Mountain West Cross Country Championships. The Falcons will use this weekend to see the course that will host an 8K men's race and 6K women's race on Friday, Oct. 31.
WEST COAST WELCOME
It is the first time since 2008 that the Falcons have raced in a California meet. That season, Air Force also used the early-season Aztec Invitational to scout the course of the conference championship meet. Four current members of the Falcons' roster are from California, including Jason Engel (Rancho Santa Margarita), Carina Gillespie (San Diego), Kevin Mihalik (San Diego) and Zach Perkins (Alameda).
MEN RECEIVE VOTES IN NATIONAL PRESEASON POLL
For the second straight season, the men were mentioned in the USTFCCCA Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Falcons return three runners from last season's squad that finished 20th at the NCAA Championships. With 10 points, Air Force is tied with Butler for second in the "receiving votes" category and 32nd overall.
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
Seniors Riley Coates and Zach Perkins will serve as the men's team captains for the 2014 season, while classmates Heather Connick and Taylor Drolshagen will lead the women's team. It is the third time in the last five years that both the men and women have had multiple captains (2010: Tyler Small/Justin Tyner/Auriele Fain/Katherine Ward; 2012: Jeremy Drenckhahn/Andrew Quallio/Jen Bremser/Melissa Fuerst).
LOOK WHO'S BACK
The Falcons return three all-conference runners, including first-team selection Hannah Everson (fifth in 2013) and second-team honorees Riley Coates (12th in 2012) and Patrick Corona (13th in 2013). Everson, the first member of the women's team to ever garner top-eight status at a conference meet, and Corona also collected all-region status in 2013. In addition, Zach Perkins was the runner-up in the 1500-meter run at the 2013 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, while he, Corona and Matt Dorsey all qualified to the national meet in that event last season.
MEN THIRD, WOMEN SIXTH IN PRESEASON POLL
The men were picked to finish third in the annual Mountain West Preseason Coaches' Poll, as they accounted for 35 points to tie with Boise State in the eight-team league. On the women's side, the Falcons tallied 58 points to rank sixth among 11 conference teams.
FAMILY CONNECTIONS
Two members of the women's team have connections to other Air Force athletes. Anna Olesinski's brother Marek is a senior on the men's basketball team, while Lindy Long's sister Lainie is a senior on the diving team. In addition, Zach Perkins is just one year removed from having a sibling on the cross country team, as his brother Charlie graduated in 2014.
LOOKING LOCAL
Five Falcons hail from the state of Colorado, including a pair of Colorado Springs natives in sophomore Hannah Everson (Liberty HS) and freshman Conner Wilburn (The Classical Academy). Sophomore Samantha Skold hails from Evergreen (Evergreen HS), while freshmen Nicole Hahn and Giulianna Vessa both attended Ralston Valley HS in Arvada.
WELCOME TO THE TEAM
The Falcons added eight men and five women to their roster for the 2014 season. The men's freshmen field included Colin Chehanske, Forrest Isenhour, Andrew Johnston, Sean Lyons, Andrew Milliron, Jimmy Shipley, Joseph Taylor and Conner Wilburn, while the newest members of the women's roster are Katie Burnham, Amanda Elliott, Carina Gillespie, Nicole Hahn and Giulianna Vessa.
LEADING THE WAY
Air Force is under the direction of first-year head coach Ryan Cole, who assumed control of the program in August 2014. Cole came to the Academy after spending seven seasons at Arizona State, including three where he served as the head coach of the women's distance program and led Shelby Houlihan to the 2014 NCAA title in the 1500-meter run.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Rebecca Esselstein earned Capital One Academic All-America honors for cross country and track/field for the second straight year. Esselstein, who was joined by 2014 graduate Josh Nielsen, earned second-team status to become the program's first athlete since cross country/track and field separated into its own category in 2002 to earn multiple Academic All-America awards in a career.
QUICK LOOK BACK AT 2013
Isaiah Bragg became the program's first Mountain West champion and paced the men to a 20th-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Bragg and Patrick Corona earned all-conference and all-region honors on the men's side, while Hannah Everson captured both awards on the women's side. Everson, who became the first Air Force female to earn first-team all-MW accolades, was one of two all-conference honorees for the women, as Annette Eichenberger's ninth-place finish marked the first time in program history that a pair of runners finished among the conference's top 10.
FOLLOW THE FALCONS ON TWITTER
Fans of Air Force cross country can follow the team on Twitter via @af_trackfield - the official account of the Falcons' cross country and track and field teams.
HISTORY 101
The Air Force Cross Country Historical Guide is now available at here .
LOOKING AHEAD
The Falcons are off from competition until Saturday, Sept. 20, when they travel to Lincoln, Neb., for the 25th-annual Woody Greeno Invitational. Air Force swept the team titles during its last appearance at Pioneers Park in 2012.
Players Mentioned
