Friday, November 21, 2014

The NCAA Division II West Region Cross Country Championships are set for Saturday at Amend Park. The regional event is home to three conferences and close to 400 runners all vying for a trip to the NCAA Nationals.

BY BIRGITTA GRAY
MSU Billings  Sports Information

BILLINGS, Mont. – Close to 400 runners will be in the Magic City Saturday for the 2014 NCAA Division II West Region Cross Country Championships hosted by Montana State University Billings. The West Region races will be run at Amend Park, with the men's race scheduled for 11 a.m. followed by the women at 12:15 p.m. (MST).

The top six men's and women's team finishers and the top three individuals not on one of the three qualifying teams will earn trips to Louisville, Kent., Dec. 6 for the NCAA national meet.

“The teams and I are really excited to be hosting the championships,” Yellowjacket head coach Dave Coppock said. “There will be 25 men’s and 28 women’s teams competing in the event from three conferences. I believe this may be the largest cross country meet ever contested in Billings and we feel honored to be able to host an important event like this.”

The Great Northwest Athletic Conference, the California Collegiate Athletic Association, and the PacWest Conference will all be sending teams to the first cross country NCAA event hosted by MSUB.  All 20 GNAC teams - 10 men's and 10 women's - are scheduled to compete.

“MSUB is excited to host this premier NCAA II event,” Montana State University Billings Athletic Director Krista Montague said. “We have been honored to work with the NCAA to plan and execute a memorable championship event here and we look forward to working with the staff, coaches, and student-athletes from the various West Region institutions as well.”  

NCAA Div. II West Region Championships:

Men’s Preview

Four men’s teams from the West Region are nationally ranked in the Top 25 and will be competing at the Billings event.

No. 6 Alaska Anchorage is the lone men’s team from the GNAC ranked in the Top 25. Led by freshman Henry Cheseto, the Seawolves captured their fifth consecutive GNAC title at the conference meet run in Monmouth, Ore., on Nov. 1.

Cheseto was the men’s individual winner, finishing the 8k in a time of 24:35.91. Cheseto was crowned the GNAC Men’s Cross Country Athlete of the Year and the Freshman of the Year for his efforts. UAA won the event with 18 team points, the lowest score in the history of the event, 43 fewer points than second-place Western Washington which finished with 61 total points.

Alaska Anchorage has won eight of the 14 total GNAC titles since the conference was founded in 2001. They have also won two of the last five men’s West Region titles.

Chico State is ranked No. 4 in the nation. The Wildcats have won three of the last five West Region titles, including the last two run in Hawaii in 2012 and last year in Spokane.

At the CCAA conference event in San Bernardino, Calif., the Wildcats cruised to their 13th consecutive conference title, the longest streak in the nation.

Champion Mark McGuirk raced to the 8k title in 25:13.8, eclipsing the second-place finisher by nearly three seconds. CSUC placed seven runners in the Top 16 and finished with 29 points, 17 fewer than Cal Poly Pomona.

With its second-place team finish the Broncos leap from No. 21 to No. 10 in the national poll. Pomona's Mark Muizar was second at the conference event.

From the PacWest, California Baptist is ranked No. 18 in the latest national poll. At the conference event hosted by Fresno Pacific, the nationally-ranked Lancers won their fourth consecutive title.

CBU placed five runners in the Top 11 spots to finish with a total of 30 points. From Cal Baptist, senior Taylor Guske was the individual winner, finishing the 8k course in 24:49.98. The Academy of Art placed second.

Women’s Preview

Five of the 28 women’s teams on their way to Billings this week are nationally ranked.

From the GNAC, Alaska Anchorage has won four of the last five West Region titles. Last year the Seawolves finished first with 76 points, while Chico State was the title holder in 2012 finishing with 51 total team points.

Three GNAC teams are nationally ranked this year -  No. 9 Simon Fraser, No. 13 Alaska Anchorage, and No. 18 Western Washington. At the conference event in Monmouth, Ore., on Nov. 3, Simon Fraser won its first ever women’s cross country title.

The Clan won by one point over Alaska Anchorage, and two points ahead of Western Washington, the smallest margin of victory ever at a GNAC event. Simon Fraser placed two runners in the top five.

Western Washington’s Katelyn Steen won the individual title. The senior Viking covered the 6k distance in a time of 20:31.99, 19 seconds faster than runner-up Rebecca Bassett of Simon Fraser.

SFU's team championship snapped Alaska Anchorage's five-year team title run.  

No. 4 Chico State and No. 23 Cal Poly Pomona are the two nationally ranked representatives from the CCAA.

In San Bernardino, Calif., Chico State placed five runners in the Top 15 to win the competition with 50 points, 22 less than Cal Poly Pomona which placed second with 71. Humboldt’s Kori Gilley won the race in a time of 22:29.3.

California Baptist may not be ranked nationally on the women’s side, but the Lancers won the PacWest cross country championships in Fresno, Calif., and are regionally ranked at No. 6. CBU placed two runners in the Top 5 to edge out Azusa Pacific 56 points to 59 points for the title.

Hawai’i Pacific’s Fiona McKenna won her second consecutive tile, winning the 6k in 21:11.23. Hawai’i Pacific came in third in the team scores with 63 total points.

Saturday’s event kicks off at 11 a.m. with the men’s 10k race. The women’s start time is scheduled for 12:15 a.m. Admission to the event at Amend Park is free of charge.

"We are pleased to continue our partnership with Visit Billings and look forward to bringing this great event to our city for the first time,” Montague said. “We thank them for their continued support of bringing highly competitive GNAC and NCAA events to Billings.”

MSU Billings was awarded hosting duties for the 2014 and 2016 NCAA Division II Cross Country West Region Championships. This is the first NCAA event MSU Billings has hosted since the men’s basketball West region tournament in 1987.

“We personally would also like to thank our dedicated athletics coaches, staff, and the numerous community volunteers all who have stepped up to make this event happen,” Montague said. “It has taken numerous hours by many dedicated individuals to prepare for this exciting occasion.”