Air Force Sweeps Team Titles at Tiger Open

VICTORIA, Kan. – The Air Force cross country team swept the men's and women's team titles at the Fort Hays State Tiger Open this morning (Oct. 13) in Victoria, Kansas. Competing in the Gold Races at the Sand Plum Nature Trail, the men captured their first Tiger Open title since 2006 – and sixth overall – while the women collected their first FHSU title since 2004 – and third overall.

"We had some very encouraging results in Kansas," Air Force head coach Ryan Cole said. "Not just for the immediate season, but also for the future of our program. Overall, we had a good weekend."

Junior Patrick Sullivan paced Air Force's men to three top-10 finishes, as all five scoring runners placed within the top 25 of the overall field. Recording an 8K time of 25:05.3, Sullivan finished third in the collegiate field and fourth overall in a Gold Race that included over 150 runners. Senior Andrew Tankersley finished seventh with a time of 25:11.9, while classmate Noah Riley finished 10th with a mark of 25:23.9. Sophomore Jordan Lesansee clocked an 18th-place time of 25:39.2, while senior Erik McMillan rounded out the Falcons' scoring lineup with a 24th-place time of 25:46.3.

The men accounted for 53 points to win the 17-team Gold Race by 23 points.

On the women's side, freshman Jenna Kill posted a 5K time of 18:16.1 to finish third out of 130 runners and lead Air Force's scoring lineup to five top-30 finishes. Sophomore Shay Stayton posted a time of 18:36.9 to finish 10th in the overall field, while freshman Andi Almodovar finished 15th with a time of 18:56.8. Sydney Hansen, a fellow first-year runner, recorded a 25th-place time of 19:20.1, while sophomore Sarah Bodmer rounded out the squad's scoring lineup with a 30th-place time of 19:25.4.

The women combined for 74 points to edge Adams State, the top-ranked program in the USTFCCCA Division II national standings, by one point (75) and win the 16-team meet.

Sophomore Colin Dwyer (31st, 25:51.5), classmate Konrad Steck (42nd, 26:03.8) and junior Marshall Wheeler (46th, 26:07.0) also placed within the top 50 of the men's Gold Race, while senior Nikolai Rhodes finished 70th in a time of 26:26.5. Freshmen Sarah Deresky (34th, 19:29.0) and Adrianna Wilder (39th, 19:36.6) added top-50 finishes to the women's overall lineup in the women's Gold Race.

Several members of the men's team also competed in the non-scoring Black Race this morning at Sand Plum. Sophomore Drew Lester (seventh, 25:57.2) and freshman Matt Zacharias (26:01.6) placed among the top-10 of the 175-runner field, while freshmen Ryan Ioanidis (13th, 26:11.8), Luke Nolley (14th, 26:12.3) and Will Kitzhaber (18th, 26:26.9) added top-20 finishes. Sophomore Aric Kedge posted a time of 26:44.1 to finish 26th, while senior Gordon Kowalkowski and freshman Chris Floyd finished 36th (26:56.7) and 37th (26:57.0), respectively. Freshman Joseph collected a 40th-place time of 27:02.8 and freshman Adam Kedge rounded out Air Force's second lineup with a 60th-place time of 27:40.0.

With the regular season complete, the Falcons begin the championship portion of their season on Friday, Oct. 26, when they travel to San Diego, Calif., for the 2018 Mountain West Cross Country Championships.

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Players Mentioned

Andi Almodovar

Sarah Bodmer

Sarah Deresky

Colin Dwyer

Chris Floyd

Sydney Hansen

Ryan Ioanidis

AJ Kedge

Aric Kedge

Jenna Kill

Will Kitzhaber

Gordon Kowalkowski

Jordan Lesansee

Drew Lester

Erik McMillan

Luke Nolley

Nikolai Rhodes

Noah Riley

Shay Stayton

Konrad Steck

Patrick Sullivan

Andrew Tankersley

Marshall Wheeler

Adrianna Wilder

Matt Zacharias

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