Max Sannes Leads Men’s Cross Country at Nuttycombe Invitational

MADISON, Wis. – Air Force junior Max Sannes finished 14th out of nearly 200 runners this afternoon (Sept. 27), as the 30th-ranked men's cross country team wrapped up competition at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational in Madison. Despite a young lineup traversing the 8K circuit around Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course, the Falcons placed three in the top 50, en route to a 16th-place finish in the team standings.

"Our objective today was to have a productive step forward," Ryan Cole, Air Force Director of Track & Field and Cross Country, said. "Five of our seven guys racing today had never run in a collegiate cross country race of this caliber, so we didn't have much experience coming in. But the only way to gain that experience is to go out there and compete, and we had some very positive performances. Max (Sannes) and Zach (Ayers) led the way as expected. But the breakout run today was from Tanner Lindahl. He's had a tough couple of years, so to see him rewarded for his determination and resiliency is awesome."

Sannes crossed the finish line in an 8K time of 23:43.4 to finish 14th in the 186-runner field that included 18 of the nation's top 30 teams. Classmate Zach Ayers clocked in a time of 24:00.3 to place 32nd, while fellow junior Tanner Lindahl – competing in his first meet outside the state of Colorado – recorded a time of 24:12.0 to finish 48th. A pair of sophomores rounded out the Falcons' scoring lineup, as Patrick Lawson (25:14.6, 137th) and Benjamin Davenport (25:23.6, 157th) finished just 10 places apart in their first travel trip. Fellow second-year runner Dominykas Remeikis also made his road debut this afternoon, finishing 164th with a time of 25:50.7.

Air Force, who entered the week ranked No. 30 in the latest USTFCCCA Coaches Poll, tallied 372 points to place 16th against today's stacked finish. With that placement, the Falcons finished ahead of three higher-ranked teams, as well as one that had been ranked in the previous poll.

A young batch of Falcons will race at the Colorado Springs XC Open on Friday, Oct. 11, while Air Force will return to Zimmer Championship Course on Saturday, Oct. 19, for Pre-Nationals.

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