Friday, October 26
San Diego, CA
10:00 a.m. MT
Air Force Academy
at
MW Championships
Photo by: Justin Tafoya, NCAA Photos
Men Second, Women Third at MW Championships
10/26/2018 12:11:00 PM | Cross Country
Four Falcons collected top-10 finishes at the annual conference meet.
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The Air Force cross country team kicked off the championship portion of its season this morning (Oct. 26) with top-three finishes at the 2018 Mountain West Championships in San Diego. The 16th-ranked men used a strong push in the final 2000 meters to finish second in the team standings, while the women, who are receiving votes in the latest coaches' poll, finished third – only trailing two of the top-three teams in the country.
Backed by three top-10 runners, all five members of the men's scoring team placed within the top 25 of the 65-runner field under hot and humid conditions on the Morley Field course at Balboa Park. The senior contingent of Mickey Davey, Nathan Thomas and Trevor Siniscalchi all earned all-conference accolades during their top-10 performances, as Davey and Thomas finished fifth (24:44.6) and seventh (24:55.8), respectively, for first-team accolades in the 8K race, while Siniscalchi clocked a time of 25:04.8 to finish 10th and earn second-team honors. Sophomore Alec Schrank posted a time of 25:17.6 to finish 18th, while classmate Scott Johnson rounded out the squad's scoring lineup with a 23rd-place time of 25:32.4.
The 16th-ranked men registered 50 points to finish second in the eight-team conference standings. Eighth-ranked Boise State won the meet with 50 points, while the Falcons and 17th-ranked Colorado State (76 points) rounded out the top three. No. 13 Wyoming tallied 80 points to finish fourth, while Utah State, which was receiving votes in the latest coaches' poll, registered 120 points to take fifth. New Mexico (sixth, 144), San Jose State (seventh, 161) and Fresno State (eighth, 239) rounded out the men's field.
Highlighted by a fifth-place finish from senior Jaci Smith, all five scoring runners for the women's team placed within the top 40 of the 91-runner 6K championship race. Smith clocked a time of 20:40.4 to finish fifth and earn first-team all-conference honors, while sophomore Maria Mettler captured second-team status with a 14th-place time of 21:20.6. Juniors Lindsey Blanks and Swathi Samuel finished 23rd (21:51.3) and 27th (22:00.5), respectively, while classmate Teri Brady rounded out the scoring lineup with a 37th-place time of 22:33.7.
The women, who are receiving votes in the latest coaches' poll, accounted for 105 points to finish third in the 11-team meet. Third-ranked New Mexico edged second-ranked Boise State by just two points for the team title (33-35), while the Falcons' bettered the rest of the field by 21 points. Utah State, ranked 27th in the coaches' poll, finished fourth with 126 points, while San Jose State finished fifth with 149 points. Nevada and Colorado State finished sixth and seventh, respectively, with matching 155-point totals, while Wyoming (eighth, 196), Fresno State (ninth, 292), San Diego State (10th, 307) and UNLV (11th, 335) rounded out the conference standings.
The entire men's contingent finished within the top 40, as four other Falcons also competed in the 8K race at Balboa Park. Junior Patrick Sullivan led the quartet after clocking a time of 25:42.5 to finish 29th, while senior Jacob Bilvado finished two spots back in 31st (25:45.4). Sophomore Hunter Boyer and junior Justin Weber rounded out the Falcons' lineup, as they finished 36th (25:51.6) and 40th (25:03.1), respectively.
The women also saw four other runners compete in the 6K race, with a trio of freshmen making their collegiate debut at the conference meet. Senior Shanna Burns and freshman Jenna Kill finished 42nd (22:36.7) and 45th (22:46.5), respectively, while fellow freshman Mikayla Gallagher placed 56th (23:11.3) and classmate Andi Almodovar took 67th (23:35.4).
"Both groups exceeded our pre-championship conference ranking, which is a goal we always have for our conference meet," head coach Ryan Cole said. "Both teams also executed a very patient and disciplined race plan, moving up throughout the race, which was great to see. For our first championship race of the season, we had some very positive results, particularly from our senior class. It was awesome to see Trevor have a great run in his hometown, Mickey continued to run up at the front and Nate probably had his best race in an Air Force uniform. On the women's side, Jaci had her best race of the season and Maria did a really nice job, while Lindsey and Swathi continued their very strong seasons."
The Falcons return to action on Friday, Nov. 9, when they travel to Utah for the NCAA Mountain Regional.
Backed by three top-10 runners, all five members of the men's scoring team placed within the top 25 of the 65-runner field under hot and humid conditions on the Morley Field course at Balboa Park. The senior contingent of Mickey Davey, Nathan Thomas and Trevor Siniscalchi all earned all-conference accolades during their top-10 performances, as Davey and Thomas finished fifth (24:44.6) and seventh (24:55.8), respectively, for first-team accolades in the 8K race, while Siniscalchi clocked a time of 25:04.8 to finish 10th and earn second-team honors. Sophomore Alec Schrank posted a time of 25:17.6 to finish 18th, while classmate Scott Johnson rounded out the squad's scoring lineup with a 23rd-place time of 25:32.4.
The 16th-ranked men registered 50 points to finish second in the eight-team conference standings. Eighth-ranked Boise State won the meet with 50 points, while the Falcons and 17th-ranked Colorado State (76 points) rounded out the top three. No. 13 Wyoming tallied 80 points to finish fourth, while Utah State, which was receiving votes in the latest coaches' poll, registered 120 points to take fifth. New Mexico (sixth, 144), San Jose State (seventh, 161) and Fresno State (eighth, 239) rounded out the men's field.
Highlighted by a fifth-place finish from senior Jaci Smith, all five scoring runners for the women's team placed within the top 40 of the 91-runner 6K championship race. Smith clocked a time of 20:40.4 to finish fifth and earn first-team all-conference honors, while sophomore Maria Mettler captured second-team status with a 14th-place time of 21:20.6. Juniors Lindsey Blanks and Swathi Samuel finished 23rd (21:51.3) and 27th (22:00.5), respectively, while classmate Teri Brady rounded out the scoring lineup with a 37th-place time of 22:33.7.
The women, who are receiving votes in the latest coaches' poll, accounted for 105 points to finish third in the 11-team meet. Third-ranked New Mexico edged second-ranked Boise State by just two points for the team title (33-35), while the Falcons' bettered the rest of the field by 21 points. Utah State, ranked 27th in the coaches' poll, finished fourth with 126 points, while San Jose State finished fifth with 149 points. Nevada and Colorado State finished sixth and seventh, respectively, with matching 155-point totals, while Wyoming (eighth, 196), Fresno State (ninth, 292), San Diego State (10th, 307) and UNLV (11th, 335) rounded out the conference standings.
The entire men's contingent finished within the top 40, as four other Falcons also competed in the 8K race at Balboa Park. Junior Patrick Sullivan led the quartet after clocking a time of 25:42.5 to finish 29th, while senior Jacob Bilvado finished two spots back in 31st (25:45.4). Sophomore Hunter Boyer and junior Justin Weber rounded out the Falcons' lineup, as they finished 36th (25:51.6) and 40th (25:03.1), respectively.
The women also saw four other runners compete in the 6K race, with a trio of freshmen making their collegiate debut at the conference meet. Senior Shanna Burns and freshman Jenna Kill finished 42nd (22:36.7) and 45th (22:46.5), respectively, while fellow freshman Mikayla Gallagher placed 56th (23:11.3) and classmate Andi Almodovar took 67th (23:35.4).
"Both groups exceeded our pre-championship conference ranking, which is a goal we always have for our conference meet," head coach Ryan Cole said. "Both teams also executed a very patient and disciplined race plan, moving up throughout the race, which was great to see. For our first championship race of the season, we had some very positive results, particularly from our senior class. It was awesome to see Trevor have a great run in his hometown, Mickey continued to run up at the front and Nate probably had his best race in an Air Force uniform. On the women's side, Jaci had her best race of the season and Maria did a really nice job, while Lindsey and Swathi continued their very strong seasons."
The Falcons return to action on Friday, Nov. 9, when they travel to Utah for the NCAA Mountain Regional.
Players Mentioned
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