Friday, October 14
Madison, WI
10:00 am MT
Air Force Academy
at
Nuttycombe Invitational
Photo by: Ricky Bassman
Men Finish Fourth at Nuttycombe Invitational
10/14/2022 6:53:00 PM | Cross Country
Sam Gilman (10th) paced the men to five top-40 finishes and a fourth-place team finish.
MADISON, Wis. – With just 16.2 seconds separating their five scoring runners, the 12th-ranked Air Force men's cross country team picked up an impressive fourth-place finish this afternoon (Oct. 14) at the prestigious Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational in Madison.
Backed by a 10th-place finish from senior Sam Gilman, the Falcons saw all five scoring runners place within the top 40 of the 239-runner event. Gilman posted the program's first top-10 finish ever at Wisconsin, as he gained 27 places over the final 2000 meters to cross the finish line in an 8K time of 23:24.3 – a program-best on the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course and the third-fastest at any 8K location in Air Force history.
The senior guided his teammates to five top-40 finishes on Friday, as less than five seconds separated the Falcons' 2-5 runners. Junior Luke Combs, in his first official race of the year, clocked a time of 24:35.8 to place 29th, while senior Ethan Marshall finished just two spots back (31st) with a time of 23:37.0. Fellow seniors Ryan Johnson and Scott Maison rounded out the Falcons' scoring lineup with back-to-back finishes, as Johnson clocked a time of 23:40.3 (39th) and Maison earned a finishing mark of 23:40.5 (40th).
Air Force, which entered the meet ranked 12th in the latest USTFCCCA national standings, accumulated 149 points to finish fourth in the 33-team meet that included 18 of the nation's top 30 teams. The Falcons, who stormed up the team standings over the 8000-meter course, moving from 10th (4K check) to sixth (6K check) to fourth – a finish that was only four points behind the two-time defending national champions from NAU (third, 145 points). Second-ranked Stanford (first, 54) and top-ranked BYU (second, 89) reversed their national standings in today's team finishes, while No. 13 Notre Dame rounded out the top five with 186 points.
On the women's side, the sophomore duo of Lindsey Peters and Halle Hamilton finished just 0.3-second apart to capture top-25 finishes in the 263-runner field. Peters captured a 6K time of 20:15.9 to finish 20th in the overall field, while Hamilton was close on her heels for a 21st-place time of 20:16.2. Those times were two of the three-fastest Air Force times at a Wisconsin meet, while the pair also accounted for the second- and third-highest finishes by an Air Force runner at that meet. Fellow sophomore Ally Peterson was the Falcons' No. 3 runner with a 147th-place time of 21:09.7, while junior Rachel Crytser and freshman India Jones rounded out the scoring lineup by finishing 176th (21:24.3) and 218th (21:52.1), respectively.
The women collected 567 points to finish 23rd in the 36-team field that included 24 of the nation's top 30 teams. With that finish, Air Force placed ahead of seven teams currently in the national conversation, including three that were ranked within the USTFCCCA Top 30.
"Today was a very positive step forward for both groups," Ryan Cole, Air Force Director of Track & Field and Cross Country, said following the meet. "We effectively adjusted some early race execution from our last event and had much better team outcomes. We still have room to develop on both sides and will continue striving to improve both groups over the next five weeks. But this weekend helped our cause for the end of the year as well as preparations for our upcoming championship season."
Several other Falcons competed on the Zimmer Course today. Junior Sean Maison added a top-50 finish in the men's 8K race (49th, 23:46.9), while sophomore Bryce Lentz and junior Eli Bennett finished 76th (23:56.9) and 93rd (24:02.0), respectively. On the women's side, junior Rayna Fruchey clocked a 6K time of 22:08.0 to finish 235th, while senior Maddie Edwards added a time of 22:42.7 (254th).
Another lineup of Air Force runners takes to the course tomorrow (Oct. 15), as they travel to Colby, Kan., for the Trojan Invitational. Action begins at 10:00 a.m. (CT) around Meadow Lake Golf Course.
Backed by a 10th-place finish from senior Sam Gilman, the Falcons saw all five scoring runners place within the top 40 of the 239-runner event. Gilman posted the program's first top-10 finish ever at Wisconsin, as he gained 27 places over the final 2000 meters to cross the finish line in an 8K time of 23:24.3 – a program-best on the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course and the third-fastest at any 8K location in Air Force history.
The senior guided his teammates to five top-40 finishes on Friday, as less than five seconds separated the Falcons' 2-5 runners. Junior Luke Combs, in his first official race of the year, clocked a time of 24:35.8 to place 29th, while senior Ethan Marshall finished just two spots back (31st) with a time of 23:37.0. Fellow seniors Ryan Johnson and Scott Maison rounded out the Falcons' scoring lineup with back-to-back finishes, as Johnson clocked a time of 23:40.3 (39th) and Maison earned a finishing mark of 23:40.5 (40th).
Air Force, which entered the meet ranked 12th in the latest USTFCCCA national standings, accumulated 149 points to finish fourth in the 33-team meet that included 18 of the nation's top 30 teams. The Falcons, who stormed up the team standings over the 8000-meter course, moving from 10th (4K check) to sixth (6K check) to fourth – a finish that was only four points behind the two-time defending national champions from NAU (third, 145 points). Second-ranked Stanford (first, 54) and top-ranked BYU (second, 89) reversed their national standings in today's team finishes, while No. 13 Notre Dame rounded out the top five with 186 points.
On the women's side, the sophomore duo of Lindsey Peters and Halle Hamilton finished just 0.3-second apart to capture top-25 finishes in the 263-runner field. Peters captured a 6K time of 20:15.9 to finish 20th in the overall field, while Hamilton was close on her heels for a 21st-place time of 20:16.2. Those times were two of the three-fastest Air Force times at a Wisconsin meet, while the pair also accounted for the second- and third-highest finishes by an Air Force runner at that meet. Fellow sophomore Ally Peterson was the Falcons' No. 3 runner with a 147th-place time of 21:09.7, while junior Rachel Crytser and freshman India Jones rounded out the scoring lineup by finishing 176th (21:24.3) and 218th (21:52.1), respectively.
The women collected 567 points to finish 23rd in the 36-team field that included 24 of the nation's top 30 teams. With that finish, Air Force placed ahead of seven teams currently in the national conversation, including three that were ranked within the USTFCCCA Top 30.
"Today was a very positive step forward for both groups," Ryan Cole, Air Force Director of Track & Field and Cross Country, said following the meet. "We effectively adjusted some early race execution from our last event and had much better team outcomes. We still have room to develop on both sides and will continue striving to improve both groups over the next five weeks. But this weekend helped our cause for the end of the year as well as preparations for our upcoming championship season."
Several other Falcons competed on the Zimmer Course today. Junior Sean Maison added a top-50 finish in the men's 8K race (49th, 23:46.9), while sophomore Bryce Lentz and junior Eli Bennett finished 76th (23:56.9) and 93rd (24:02.0), respectively. On the women's side, junior Rayna Fruchey clocked a 6K time of 22:08.0 to finish 235th, while senior Maddie Edwards added a time of 22:42.7 (254th).
Another lineup of Air Force runners takes to the course tomorrow (Oct. 15), as they travel to Colby, Kan., for the Trojan Invitational. Action begins at 10:00 a.m. (CT) around Meadow Lake Golf Course.
Players Mentioned
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