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Angela Roberts, FLC Athletic Communications

Skyhawks set school records at Highlander Invitational

10/15/2022 12:02:00 PM

By: Angela Roberts, Assistant AD - Communications
RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Competing in a stacked field with teams from both NCAA Division I and II ranks, the Fort Lewis College men's and women's cross country teams each turned in a 10th-place finish at the Highlander Invitational hosted by UC Riverside.

Head-turning individual performances from Katie Fankhouser and Ethan Bartlett, each of which shattered the school record for their respective races, were highlighted by quality outings from a flock of Skyhawks who established personal bests while climbing the ranks of the FLC All-Time list.

Both the men's 8k and the women's 6k race saw 20+ teams racing and nearly 300 runners toeing the line for each race on a beautiful day at the Agriculture Course. Fellow Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference member, Adams State University, took home the team crown on the men's and women's sides.

Men's Results
The Skyhawks finished in 10th place with 252 points and averaged a time of 25:04 for the race. The team average is a significant improvement on the group's 29:00 mark last week and the 26:07.7 mark at the Roadrunners Invitational in mid-September. Fort Lewis finished directly ahead of San Diego Mesa College, Central Arizona, Mesa CC, and San Diego with a 1:37 spread. 

Ethan Bartlett returned to the course and made his presence known and led the group with a 15th-place finish at 24:11.5. His time establishes a school record, bettering a time of 24:13.2 from Christian Gering set in 2014.

"Today we ran the fastest pack time in school history and had 12 guys under 26:30. It doesn't get much better than that," said head coach Josh Coon. "I can't say enough about Ethan and him setting an 8k school record after four years of hard work."

Following Bartlett was Caden Resendez with a 36th place finish (24:39.8). Coming off a solid outing at the George Strandt Memorial last week, freshman Cebastian Marquez crossed the line in 25:16.8—good for 74th place. Junior Max Robinson and freshman Bean Minor rounded out the top five for Fort Lewis, finishing in 77th and 97th, respectively.

Additional finishers for the Skyhawks:
"The teams that finished ahead of us today are the top DII teams of DI West Regional ranked teams. We ran with great competition and competed well. We know this is just the start, and the real racing is just beginning. I'm proud of this group and how they carry themselves," acknowledged Coon.

Women's Results
"This was one of those picture-perfect days," said head coach Shawn Jakubowski. "The training is starting to come together, and if I had to give this race a grade it would be an 'A'. Katie smashed the school record running 20:48, and we had 13 runners break into the Fort Lewis All-Time Top 25 6k."

The Skyhawks finished in 10th place with 279 points and an average time of 21:58. The team came in ahead of UC Santa Barbara, Embry-Riddle, San Diego, and CSUSB in the field of 25 teams.

Katie Fankhouser continued her dominant junior campaign with a 15th-place finish at 20:48.4—establishing a school record along the way. The Colorado native knocked off Emily Roser who ran a time of 21:10.6 in Pensacola, Florida in 2006.

Esther Beck followed with a 67th-place finish at 21:51.5 and now sits fifth all-time in the FLC 6k ranks. Angel Curly clocked a time of 22:00.6 which was good for 74th in the race and eighth all-time for the Skyhawks. Sophia Mena and Carmella Wright rounded out the top five for Fort Lewis at 97th and 99th, respectively.

Additional Finishers for the Skyhawks:
"These women rewrote the record book today, and we will use this momentum moving forward toward the RMAC and Regional Championships," noted Jakubowski. " The team is leaving California happy but not satisfied. The RMAC is the toughest conference in the country, and we just made it a little stronger. In a few weeks, we plan to make some noise at home."

Up Next
The Skyhawks will take the next few weeks to tune up for the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championships on November 5th at the Hillcrest Golf Course.
 
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