WAC CHAMPIONSHIP The 2005 WAC Cross Country Championship is being held today in Boise, Idaho. This year's championships is being competed at Eagle Island State Park. There will be two new team champions crowned with the departure of the Rice men and SMU women.
CHAMPIONSHIP TIMES
8:45 a.m. - Women report to starting line
9:00 a.m. - Women??s race (5,000 meters)
9:30 p.m. - Men report to starting line
9:45 p.m. - Men??s race (8,000 meters)
Awards ceremony following the men??s raceClick here for a .pdf version of the WAC Cross Country Championship Notes
Championship Site
There will be six men's teams competing at this year's Championship, including Boise State, Idaho, Louisiana Tech, New Mexico State, San Jose State and Utah State. Many of the men's teams have been led by one runner in each of their events. Host, Boise State has ran on the heels of Ty Axtman, who has been the lead Bronco in all six of their events. Axtman hit full stride mid-way though the season, placing second in three-straight meets. Idaho, which is competing in its first WAC Cross Country Championship, has had three different top finishers in its four events this fall. Dale Engler was the top finisher of the season, taking seventh in the Vandal Twilight Jamboree. Kevin Fresian and Ian Chestnut both led the Vandals this season. Louisiana Tech is having one of its best season's, winning its first three meets of the year. The Bulldogs have been led by Tim Marshall who posted three second-place finishes in 2005. This is New Mexico State's first appearance at a WAC Championship. The Aggie men will look to Josh Sifuentes to make the first time a charm. Sifuentes has been the top Aggie herrier in all five events this fall. San Jose State will be making its first trip out of the Golden State for the Championship. Jose Burrola and Mobin Ghoury lead the Spartan squad. Although this is the first WAC Championship for the Utah State cross country team, it is not the first for the Aggies. The Aggies competed in the 2004 WAC Indoor Track and Field Championship as an affiliate. The Aggies are led by Trever Ball and his three silver medal finshes. Utah State has won two meets this fall.
The women's field will have eight teams in attendance. The Louisiana Tech women will not attend the Championship. The Boise State women look to repeart thier earlier performance at Eagle Island, when they grabbed first. A strong contingent of Broncos has led the way all season. Kendra Hernandez, Breanna Sande and Becky Guyette have all topped the squad. Fresno State brought home one team title, but has two individuals win titleist honors. Roxanne Sellick grabbed an early season title, before Andrea Buckner kicked in to high gear and led the Bulldogs the rest of the season. Hawai'i travels to Boise looking to better last season??s fifth-place finish. The Rainbow Wahine are led by Sheena Thain and Sharlene Carillo. Idaho travels to its first WAC Cross Country Championship. The Vandals are led by Dee Olson, who won the Williamette Invitational on Oct 1. New Mexico State's top finish this fall was a second-place showing at the Kachina Classic. The Aggies have been led all season by Grace Thomson. Thomson won the Kachina Classic and UTEP Invitational. Nevada heads into the conference championship strong, taking home the Sacramento State title, Oct. 17. Leading the Wolf Pack has been Kendra Knowles and Kali Baker, who won the Sacramento State Invitational. San Jose State finished no worse than third all season including a win at the St. Louis Invitational. Tiffany Hall has been the top Spartan herrier, taking the UC Davis and St. Louis Invitational titles. The Utah State women started off their inagural WAC season strong, taking home titles in their first two meets. The Aggies have been led all season by Tiffany Strickland. Strickland won both the Heritage Center Open and Montana State Invitational.
EAGLE ISLAND STATE PARK
Description
The course footing consists of grass and dirt paths around a small pond. The course begins in a grass field and has a 200-meter straight before it enters the 2,300-meter loop around the pond. The women run the loop twice before re-entering the field to finish, and the men run the loop three times plus a smaller loop before entering the field to finish. Spikes are recommended, but the footing also allow for racing flats if it is dry. Mile and kilometer marks will be posted on the course.
RESULTS
Individual times and team scores will be posted for review. Complete results will be available 30 minutes after each race. Results will also be available at www.runnercard.com, www.broncosports.com and www.wacsports.com.
AWARDS
The Western Athletic Conference distributes a total of 34 awards at the Cross Country Chamionships. There are seven first-team all conference awards given to both the men and women, while there are also seven second-team all-conference awards handed out to both. The first-team consists of the top seven finishers, while the second-team consists of places eight through 14. The top freshman finisher is awarded the Freshman of the Year. The Runner of the Year is voted on by the leagues?? head coaches, who also vote for the Coach of the Year. All awards will be handed out 30 minutes after the men??s 8k.
NCAA REGIONALS The 2005 Cross Country Regionals will be held at nine sites throughout the country. They will all be held Saturday, Nov. 12. WAC teams will be represented in three locations. The West Region will be held in Palo Alto, Calif. (Stanford). The Mountain Region will be held in Provo, Utah (BYU), while Louisiana Tech will be the lone team in the South Central Regional (Baylor) in Waco, Texas.
November 12, 2005
Great Lakes Region - Indiana
Mid Atlantic Region - Lehigh
Midwest Region - Iowa
Mountain Region - BYU
Northeast Region - Northeastern
South Region - Florida
South Central Region - Baylor
Southeast Region - East Carolina
West Region - Stanford
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS The 2005 Cross Country National Championships once again travels to Terre Haute, Ind. and Wabash Valley Family Sports Center. Indiana State is the host for this year??s Championships.