Friday, October 27
Eagle, ID
10:15 am MT
Air Force Academy
at
MW Championships
Photo by: Justin Tafoya, NCAA Photos
Falcons Set for Mountain West Championships
10/25/2023 4:17:00 PM | Cross Country
Championship season begins for the Air Force cross country program this Friday (Oct. 27), when the team travels to Eagle, Idaho, for the 2023 Mountain West Cross Country Championships. The Falcons' lineup, which includes the 26th-ranked men, will line up against their conference counterparts at Eagle Island State Park, beginning at 10:15 a.m. (MT).
MEET INFORMATION
The Mountain West Championships will be contested at Eagle Island State Park (165 Eagle Island Pkwy) in Eagle, Idaho – 25 minutes northwest of Boise. The men will kick off this year's championship meet with an 8K race at 10:15 a.m. (MT), while the women will follow with a 6K championship 45 minutes later. The Mountain West Network will broadcast the meet live, with Adam Diehl and Lauren Green on the call, while live results will be available via Record Timing (direct links to both are available on the team's schedule page at GoAirForceFalcons.com). The championship will also be available on the Mountain West App (available on Android, IOS, Apple TC, Roku, and Android TV).
WEATHER WATCH
The projected forecast for Friday in Eagle is partly sunny, with a high of 50 and a low of 32.
A LOOK AT THE LEAGUE
The Mountain West Championships will feature 11 women's teams and nine men's programs. The women's field includes one nationally-ranked team (No. 25 Colorado State) and squads from Air Force, Boise State, Fresno State, Nevada, New Mexico, San Diego State, San Jose State, UNLV, Utah State and Wyoming. The men's lineup features ranked teams from New Mexico (No. 18), Boise State (No. 23) and Air Force (No. 26), as well as teams from Colorado State, Fresno State, Nevada, San Jose State, Utah State and Wyoming.
MEN PICKED AS PRE-CHAMPIONSHIP FAVORITES
The men, winners of the last three conference titles, received the top spot in the Mountain West's annual pre-championship coaches' poll. The Falcons collected five first-place votes and 60 points from the league coaches, while the women earned 58 points to place sixth in their pre-championship projections.
CONFERENCE HISTORY
Six different schools have captured the men's team title at the Mountain West Cross Country Championships. Former conference opponent BYU tallied nine trophies (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008) during their time in the league, while New Mexico (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014), Air Force (2003, 2015, 2020, 2021, 2022), Boise State (2016, 2018), Colorado State (2017) and Utah State (2019) have also collected MW titles. On the women's side, New Mexico (15-straight from 2008-2022) and BYU (eight-straight from 1999-2006) have combined for 23 of the last 24 titles, while Colorado State won the remaining title in 2007.
AIR FORCE HISTORY, PART I
Highlighted by five team championships (2003, 2015, 2020, 2021, 2022) and 10 runner-up finishes, the men have finished within the top three of the Mountain West 22 times in the last 24 years. The women, who have claimed runner-up honors twice (2016, 2019), have placed within the top three nine times – and finished within the top half of the field 18 times in 23 conference meets.
AIR FORCE HISTORY, PART II
Since the Mountain West was formed in 1999, the men have seen 47 runners combine for 84 all-conference awards, including two individual champions (Isaiah Bragg: 2013, Sean Maison: 2022) and 40 first-team selections. Ben Payne is the Academy's only four-time all-MW honoree, while Sam Gilman is the only Falcon to gain three first-team selections. On the women's side, 16 Falcons have combined for 23 all-conference honors, including Mahala Norris, who captured the women's first MWXC title at the 2020 championship.
FAST FACT
Air Force has accounted for the top finish by a true freshman in each of the last four championship meets – Ryan Johnson (2019 men), Luke Combs (2020 men), Halle Hamilton (2021 women) and Max Sannes (2022 men).
BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE
In addition to their success in the Mountain West, the men also captured three team titles and three individual championships as members of the Western Athletic Conference. The men won the WAC team titles in 1991, 1994 and 1996, while Chris Nelson (1990, 1991) and Eric Mack (1995) claimed individual championships.
THE NEXT COURSE
The postseason continues for Air Force on Friday, Nov. 101, when the team travels to Lubbock, Texas, for the NCAA Mountain Regional.
MEET INFORMATION
The Mountain West Championships will be contested at Eagle Island State Park (165 Eagle Island Pkwy) in Eagle, Idaho – 25 minutes northwest of Boise. The men will kick off this year's championship meet with an 8K race at 10:15 a.m. (MT), while the women will follow with a 6K championship 45 minutes later. The Mountain West Network will broadcast the meet live, with Adam Diehl and Lauren Green on the call, while live results will be available via Record Timing (direct links to both are available on the team's schedule page at GoAirForceFalcons.com). The championship will also be available on the Mountain West App (available on Android, IOS, Apple TC, Roku, and Android TV).
WEATHER WATCH
The projected forecast for Friday in Eagle is partly sunny, with a high of 50 and a low of 32.
A LOOK AT THE LEAGUE
The Mountain West Championships will feature 11 women's teams and nine men's programs. The women's field includes one nationally-ranked team (No. 25 Colorado State) and squads from Air Force, Boise State, Fresno State, Nevada, New Mexico, San Diego State, San Jose State, UNLV, Utah State and Wyoming. The men's lineup features ranked teams from New Mexico (No. 18), Boise State (No. 23) and Air Force (No. 26), as well as teams from Colorado State, Fresno State, Nevada, San Jose State, Utah State and Wyoming.
MEN PICKED AS PRE-CHAMPIONSHIP FAVORITES
The men, winners of the last three conference titles, received the top spot in the Mountain West's annual pre-championship coaches' poll. The Falcons collected five first-place votes and 60 points from the league coaches, while the women earned 58 points to place sixth in their pre-championship projections.
CONFERENCE HISTORY
Six different schools have captured the men's team title at the Mountain West Cross Country Championships. Former conference opponent BYU tallied nine trophies (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008) during their time in the league, while New Mexico (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014), Air Force (2003, 2015, 2020, 2021, 2022), Boise State (2016, 2018), Colorado State (2017) and Utah State (2019) have also collected MW titles. On the women's side, New Mexico (15-straight from 2008-2022) and BYU (eight-straight from 1999-2006) have combined for 23 of the last 24 titles, while Colorado State won the remaining title in 2007.
AIR FORCE HISTORY, PART I
Highlighted by five team championships (2003, 2015, 2020, 2021, 2022) and 10 runner-up finishes, the men have finished within the top three of the Mountain West 22 times in the last 24 years. The women, who have claimed runner-up honors twice (2016, 2019), have placed within the top three nine times – and finished within the top half of the field 18 times in 23 conference meets.
AIR FORCE HISTORY, PART II
Since the Mountain West was formed in 1999, the men have seen 47 runners combine for 84 all-conference awards, including two individual champions (Isaiah Bragg: 2013, Sean Maison: 2022) and 40 first-team selections. Ben Payne is the Academy's only four-time all-MW honoree, while Sam Gilman is the only Falcon to gain three first-team selections. On the women's side, 16 Falcons have combined for 23 all-conference honors, including Mahala Norris, who captured the women's first MWXC title at the 2020 championship.
FAST FACT
Air Force has accounted for the top finish by a true freshman in each of the last four championship meets – Ryan Johnson (2019 men), Luke Combs (2020 men), Halle Hamilton (2021 women) and Max Sannes (2022 men).
BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE
In addition to their success in the Mountain West, the men also captured three team titles and three individual championships as members of the Western Athletic Conference. The men won the WAC team titles in 1991, 1994 and 1996, while Chris Nelson (1990, 1991) and Eric Mack (1995) claimed individual championships.
THE NEXT COURSE
The postseason continues for Air Force on Friday, Nov. 101, when the team travels to Lubbock, Texas, for the NCAA Mountain Regional.
Players Mentioned
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
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