Air Force Academy
MW Championships
Air Force Men Win Mountain West Cross Country Title
10/30/2015 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Complete Results | Post-Race Quotes | Photo Gallery (NCAA Photos) 
RENO, Nev. -- With all five runners placing in the top 21 of the overall field, the 26th-ranked Air Force men's cross country team captured the Mountain West title this afternoon (Oct 30) for the Academy's first team title since 2003. The women also had a strong showing at the Montreux Golf Club in Reno, claiming third to record the program's best finish in 12 years.
Senior Patrick Corona and junior Kyle Eller finished second and third, respectively, in the 61-runner men's 8K event - marking the first time in program history that the Falcons have claimed two of the top-three spots at the MW Championships. Corona, who also earned a second-place finish at last year's meet, clocked a time of 26:30.41, while Eller finished on his heels with a time of 26:30.52.
Senior Dan Caddigan joined Corona and Eller in the top 10, as he placed 10th after crossing the finish line in a time of 27:01.65. Junior Matt Dorsey finished 13th with a time of 27:05.73, while senior Daniel Shellhouse rounded out the Falcons' scoring contingent with a 21st-place time of 27:34.16.
Air Force registered 49 points to win the men's team title - a total that matches the second-lowest in program history, while No. 30 Colorado State and No. 16 Boise State finished second (53 points) and third (56), respectively. New Mexico, which had won the last six conference titles, placed fourth with 120 points, while San Jose State (sixth, 159), Fresno State (seventh, 205) and Utah State (eighth, 220) rounded out the field.
It is the second Mountain West title for the men (2003) and the fifth overall, as the Falcons claimed three titles as members of the Western Athletic Conference (1991, 1994, 1996).
Registering the highest finish ever by an Air Force female at a conference championship meet, Hannah Everson continued her superb senior season placing third out of 83 runners in the women's 6k race with a time of 22:12.11.
All five of Air Force's scoring runners finished within the top 31 - only the third time that feat has occurred in program history. Junior Samantha Skold clocked a time of 23:54.56 to finish 17th, while sophomores Carina Gillespie and Katie Burnham placed 23rd (24:17.97) and 27th (24:30.64), respectively. Junior Lindy Long rounded out the scoring runners, finishing 31st overall with a time of 24:48.26.
With 98 points, the women registered their second-lowest point total since joining the Mountain West and finished third in the 11-team meet - a placement that matched the best finish in Academy history and the best since the conference expanded from eight teams.
Top-ranked New Mexico won the women's title for the eighth-straight year (24 points), while ninth-ranked Boise State finished second (71) and Air Force rounded out the top three. Colorado State (fourth, 106) and Wyoming (fifth, 129) completed the top half of the field, while Utah State (sixth, 144), Nevada (seventh, 149), San Jose State (eighth, 218), San Diego State (ninth, 267), UNLV (10th, 299) and Fresno State (11th, 312) rounded out the full women's event.
Several other Falcons also completed the conference course at Montreux Golf Club this afternoon. On the men's side, sophomores Andrew Johnston and Andrew Milliron finished 30th (28:04.54) and 33rd (28:11.44), respectively, while freshman Jacob Bilvado took 38th (28:16.84) and junior Jason Engel finished 51st (29:13.06). Sophomore Giulianna Vessa and freshman Shanna Burns competed in the women's race, finishing 39th (25:00.70) and 81st (28:36.00), respectively.
The Falcons return to action on Friday, Nov. 13, when they travel to Albuquerque, N.M., for the NCAA Mountain Region Championships.
Players Mentioned
