Friday, September 28
Madison, WI
10:00 a.m. MT
Air Force Academy
at
Nuttycombe Invitational
Falcons Nab Program-Best Finishes at Wisconsin
9/28/2018 2:49:00 PM | Cross Country
Mickey Davey and Jaci Smith captured top-20 finishes to lead their respective teams.
MADISON, Wis. – Backed by top-20 performances from seniors Mickey Davey and Jaci Smith, the Air Force cross country program accounted for their highest team finishes ever at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational, which wrapped up this afternoon (Sept. 28) in Madison. The 17th-ranked men captured their first-ever top-10 finish at Wisconsin (seventh), while the women earned a program-best 17th-place mark.
Davey clocked a time of 23:40.7 – Air Force's fastest 8K ever at Thomas Zimmer Championship Course – to finish 20th in a field of over 230 runners. Davey was one of three seniors to finish within the top 45, as classmates Trevor Siniscalchi and Jacob Bilvado finished 43rd (23:58.2) and 44th (23:58.5), respectively. Fellow senior Nathan Thomas posted a time of 24:10.8 to finish 67th in his first race of the season, while sophomore Scott Johnson rounded out the Falcons' scoring runners with a 103rd-place time of 24:28.8.
Air Force tallied 267 points to finish seventh in a 33-team event that included 17 of the top-30 teams in the nation. With that placement – its first-ever top-10 finish at Wisconsin's annual meet – Air Force placed ahead of 10 nationally-ranked teams, including four that were ranked higher in the USTFCCCA standings.
Recording the Falcons' fastest 6K ever at Wisconsin with a time of 20:05.4, Smith finished 17th in a field of 230 runners. The senior was one of two Falcons to place within the top 60, as sophomore Maria Mettler earned the Falcons' No. 2 finish with a 57th-place time of 20:50.4. Senior Lindsey Blanks and junior Swathi Samuel finished 106th (21:17.4) and 109th (21:19.1), respectively, while senior Shanna Burns rounded out the squad's scoring lineup with a 122nd-place time of 21:26.4. It is the first time that all five of the Falcons' scoring runners have finished within the top-half of the field at Wisconsin's annual meet.
With 411 points, the women finished 17th in the 33-team race, bettering a pair of top-30 squads and another two that were receiving votes in the latest USTFCCCA rankings. The 17th-place finish is the highest placement ever for an Air Force women's team at Wisconsin – a five-spot improvement from last season and its first top-20 finish since 2010 (18th).
Junior Justin Weber (113th, 24:32.6) and sophomore Alec Schrank (124th, 24:37.9) also competed in the men's Championship race, while junior Teri Brady (172nd, 22:01.1) and freshman Jenna Kill (186th, 22:12.7) participated in the women's Championship event.
In addition, four Falcons competed in the Open races this morning at the Nuttycombe Invitational. Sophomore Hunter Boyer clocked an 8K time of 24:56.5 to finish 12th out of 100 runners in the men's event, while senior Nikolai Rhodes and junior Patrick Sullivan finished 37th (25:19.7) and 46th (25:32.1), respectively. On the women's side, freshman Andi Almodovar clocked a personal-best 6K time of 22:19.8 to finish 49th out of 116 runners.
"Today was a positive step in our season, on both sides, but there's still a lot of work to be done," head coach Ryan Cole said. "The women competed hard – Jaci and Maria put themselves in the lead pack off the start, while the group of Shanna, Swathi and Lindsey did a really nice job of being patient and moving up steadily throughout the race. We also had a really steady run from Andi in the open race. On the men's side, we had some guys out a little more aggressively, like Mickey and Trevor, while Nate and Jacob moved up throughout the run. All seven guys really had strong runs and our three boys in the open race competed very tough, as well."
Air Force returns to action – and Madison – in two weeks for the Pre-National Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 13. It is one of two competitions that day, as another group of Falcons will travel to Hays, Kan., to compete at the Fort Hays State Open.
Davey clocked a time of 23:40.7 – Air Force's fastest 8K ever at Thomas Zimmer Championship Course – to finish 20th in a field of over 230 runners. Davey was one of three seniors to finish within the top 45, as classmates Trevor Siniscalchi and Jacob Bilvado finished 43rd (23:58.2) and 44th (23:58.5), respectively. Fellow senior Nathan Thomas posted a time of 24:10.8 to finish 67th in his first race of the season, while sophomore Scott Johnson rounded out the Falcons' scoring runners with a 103rd-place time of 24:28.8.
Air Force tallied 267 points to finish seventh in a 33-team event that included 17 of the top-30 teams in the nation. With that placement – its first-ever top-10 finish at Wisconsin's annual meet – Air Force placed ahead of 10 nationally-ranked teams, including four that were ranked higher in the USTFCCCA standings.
Recording the Falcons' fastest 6K ever at Wisconsin with a time of 20:05.4, Smith finished 17th in a field of 230 runners. The senior was one of two Falcons to place within the top 60, as sophomore Maria Mettler earned the Falcons' No. 2 finish with a 57th-place time of 20:50.4. Senior Lindsey Blanks and junior Swathi Samuel finished 106th (21:17.4) and 109th (21:19.1), respectively, while senior Shanna Burns rounded out the squad's scoring lineup with a 122nd-place time of 21:26.4. It is the first time that all five of the Falcons' scoring runners have finished within the top-half of the field at Wisconsin's annual meet.
With 411 points, the women finished 17th in the 33-team race, bettering a pair of top-30 squads and another two that were receiving votes in the latest USTFCCCA rankings. The 17th-place finish is the highest placement ever for an Air Force women's team at Wisconsin – a five-spot improvement from last season and its first top-20 finish since 2010 (18th).
Junior Justin Weber (113th, 24:32.6) and sophomore Alec Schrank (124th, 24:37.9) also competed in the men's Championship race, while junior Teri Brady (172nd, 22:01.1) and freshman Jenna Kill (186th, 22:12.7) participated in the women's Championship event.
In addition, four Falcons competed in the Open races this morning at the Nuttycombe Invitational. Sophomore Hunter Boyer clocked an 8K time of 24:56.5 to finish 12th out of 100 runners in the men's event, while senior Nikolai Rhodes and junior Patrick Sullivan finished 37th (25:19.7) and 46th (25:32.1), respectively. On the women's side, freshman Andi Almodovar clocked a personal-best 6K time of 22:19.8 to finish 49th out of 116 runners.
"Today was a positive step in our season, on both sides, but there's still a lot of work to be done," head coach Ryan Cole said. "The women competed hard – Jaci and Maria put themselves in the lead pack off the start, while the group of Shanna, Swathi and Lindsey did a really nice job of being patient and moving up steadily throughout the race. We also had a really steady run from Andi in the open race. On the men's side, we had some guys out a little more aggressively, like Mickey and Trevor, while Nate and Jacob moved up throughout the run. All seven guys really had strong runs and our three boys in the open race competed very tough, as well."
Air Force returns to action – and Madison – in two weeks for the Pre-National Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 13. It is one of two competitions that day, as another group of Falcons will travel to Hays, Kan., to compete at the Fort Hays State Open.
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