Boise, Idaho ?“ The 2005 Western Athletic Conference Men and Women?™s Cross Country Championships were held Satruday at Eagle Island State Park in Boise, Idaho. It was a welcoming party of sorts, as the Idaho women and Utah State men, which set a team-points record, claimed the team titles. In the first WAC Championship of the year, two of the newest WAC members waisted no time in showing they belong. Idaho?™s Dee Olson and Utah State?™s Trever Ball claimed individual golds.
Click on the following links for complete results:
Women's Results.pdf
Men's Results.pdf
In what was a dark and foggy morning, Eagle Island was serving as both the host for the WAC and Idaho State High School Championships. It was the women who ran first this year, with Dee Olson crossing 10 seconds ahead of her nearest competitor. In earning the WAC?™s Athlete of the Year, the junior posted a time of 17:31.31 in the 5k event. She led the Vandal contingent which claimed four of the first five spots. Utah State?™s Tiffany Strickland, the only non-Vandal to finish in the top five, finished second in a time of 17:41.83. Idaho?™s Bevin Kennelly (17:55.46), Mary Kamau (17:55.87) and Mandy Macalister (17:58.87) finished third through fifth, respectively.
In the team competition, Idaho?™s 30 points were 13 better than Utah State?™s runner-up finish. Taking third was San Jose State with 107 points, while host Boise State claimed fourth with 115. In fifth was both Nevada and Fresno State who tied with 131 points, while New Mexico State finished seventh with 167. Hawaii rounded out the field finishing eighth with 231 points.
It was more of the same as the men ran, with Utah State claiming the first four spots and five of the first six. Taking gold in the 8k event was Trever Ball of Utah State in a time of 24:12.87. Ball cleared the field by over 35 seconds and was named the 2005 WAC Athlete of the Year. Grabbing silver was fellow Aggie Clark Bryner who crossed in 24:49.89. Rounding out the Aggie men was Vance Twitchell in third (25:09.45), Seth Wold in fourth (25:16.08) and Steve Atkinson in sixth (25:29.52). Boise State?™s Ty Axtman, who had led the Broncos all season, finished fifth in a time of 25:29.52.
Utah State set a WAC record for lowest team score, grabbing sixteen points for the title. The Aggies edged UTEP?™s record of 17 set back in 1981. In second was Idaho which earned 75 points. Third place was taken by Louisiana Tech with 88 points, while Boise State finished fourth with 99. Rounding out the six-team men?™s field was San Jose State with 123 points and New Mexico State with 128.
At the conclusion of the races, the WAC announced its all-conference teams and individual honors. The following is a listing of those awards:
WOMEN
First-team all-WAC
Dee Olson, Jr., Idaho
Tiffany Strickland, Sr., Utah State
Bevin Kennelly, Sr., Idaho
Mary Kamau, Sr., Idaho
Mandy Macalister, Jr., Idaho
Ashley Johnson, Jr., Utah State
Kali Baker, Jr., Nevada
Second-team all-WAC
Andrea Buckner, Sr., Fresno State
Vanessa Hawkins, Fr., Utah State
Rebecca Guyette, Sr., Boise State
Amy Egan, Jr., Utah State
Tiffany Hall, Jr., San Jose State
Erica Sahli, So., San Jose State
Breanna Sande, Fr., Boise State
Freshman of the Year: Venessa Hawkins, Utah State
Coach of the Year: Wayne Phipps, Idaho
Athlete of the Year: Dee Olson, Jr., Idaho
MEN
First-team all-WAC
Trever Ball, Sr., Utah State
Clark Bryner, Sr., Utah State
Vance Twitchell, Jr., Utah State
Seth Wold, Fr., Utah State
Ty Axtman, Jr., Boise State
Steve Atkinson, Fr., Utah State
Mobin Ghoury, Jr., San Jose State
Second-team all-WAC
Josh Sifuentes, So., New Mexico State
Tim Marshall, Jr., Louisiana Tech
Todd Griffith, Fr., Utah State
Cody Eaton, So., Boise State
Dale Engler, Sr., Idaho
Kinsey Dinnel, So., Louisiana Tech
Kevin Friesen, Fr., Idaho
Freshman of the Year: Seth Wold, Utah State
Coach of the Year: Gregg Gensel, Utah State
Athlete of the Year: Trever Ball, Sr., Utah State