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Skyhawks cross country heads to loaded South Central Regional

11/3/2023 10:00:00 AM

By: Angela Roberts, Assistant AD-Communications
DURANGO, Colo. – With a lot to run for, the Fort Lewis College men's and women's cross country teams will head to Lubbock, Texas for the NCAA South Central Regional, hosted by Lubbock Christian University at the LCU Cross Country Course.

Last Time Out
The Skyhawks made history at the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championships, combining for six All-Conference honors at the nation's most elite distance outing. The women's team earned a sixth-place finish with a team score of 163 and a team-average time of 22:36.4. The Skyhawks ran for a 1:44.0 spread, the four-best mark among programs to finish in the top six.

Freshman Linda Weigang led the team with an impressive 16th-place finish and was just the second freshman student-athlete to cross the finish line. Her time of 21.45.0 marks a new 6k personal best, and she ran for a 5:51 average. Senior Katie Heck finished narrowly behind Weigang, crossing the line in 17th place with a time of 21:47.2—22 seconds faster than her outing at the Lewis Invitational, her season-opener at sea level. The duo earned Second-Team All-Conference accolades for their efforts.
 


It was a banner day for the Skyhawks men's team who fired on all cylinders and finished fourth in the team standings. After being projected to finish eighth in the preseason coaches poll, Fort Lewis went on to pick up a program-record four All-Conference honors. Fort Lewis ran for an average time of 25:09.4 with a 34-second spread, the second-best spread in the field and behind only No. 1-ranked Colorado School of Mines.

Senior Henry Barth was the team's top finisher, placing 16th with a time of 24:56.6 (5:02 average) to earn Second Team All-Conference honors. Sophomore Bean Minor backed him up well, crossing the line in 18th place with a time of 24:57.8 (5:02 average) to secure Second Team All-Conference accolades. The third finisher for Fort Lewis was sophomore Eli Smith who placed 26th with a Second Team All-Conference time of 25:06.0 (5:03 average), followed by junior Caden Resendez who earned Second Team All-Conference nods with a 28th place finish.
 


Regional Meet Information
The women's 6k will begin at 9:00 a.m. followed by the men's 10k at 10:00 a.m. All times are Mountain Daylight Time. The Sports Information Department at Lubbock Christian University will provide video stream and live results for both races. The elevation in Lubbock, Texas is 3,202 feet.
Women's 6k Route
Men's 10k Route

Scouting the RMAC
The RMAC is an unbelievable conference when it comes to running. When you look at the numbers and the history in the league, it is pretty unbelievable. Each year, the conference is represented on the national stage with team and individual champions, and the trend looks to be on track to continue this season.

Heading into regionals, the women's South Central Region has eight schools from the RMAC in the top 10. Fort Lewis has been holding strong in the bottom portion of the field and holds a No. 9 spot heading into regionals. Adams State is in the top spot, followed by Colorado School of Mines and Western Colorado. Those three schools are projected to pick up the automatic qualifier spots while a handful of programs are in the hunt for an AQ.
 
Women's Regional Rankings (week-by-week)

 
On the men's side, it is much of the same. Eight of the top 10 spots in the region are held down by programs repping the RMAC logo. Fort Lewis has moved up to the No. 6 spots after a historic showing the at conference meet. Colorado Christian ranks first, followed by Adams State and Western Colorado. Those programs are projected to earn automatic bids, followed by Colorado Christian, West Texas, and Fort Lewis who are all in the hunt.
 
 Men's Regional Rankings (week-by-week)


NCAA Regional Experience
At last year's snowy NCAA South Central Regional, the Skyhawks women's team placed 10th in the field of 25 teams. Katie Heck earned an 11th-place finish en route to All-Region accolades with a time of 21:51.7. The trio of Angel Curley, Sophia Mena, and Esther Beck followed in quick succession of one another. Curley turned in a 53rd-place finish with a time of 23:18.1. Mena crossed the line in 60th at 23:37.7 and Beck followed closely behind with a 62nd-place finish at 23:41.6

The men's team placed 11th in the field of 25 teams, led by Ethan Bartlett who narrowly missed All-Region honors with a 28th place finish (top 25 earn recognition) by running for a 32:10.1 time in the 10k race. Crossing the line second for the Skyhawks was Caden Resendez who turned in a 36th place race with a time of 32:21.7. Conner Dosmann  (33:48) and Brady Burrough (34:08.69) were third and fourth for Fort Lewis, placing 76th and 87th, respectively.

Up Next
The season finale for Division II cross country will be the NCAA Championships on Saturday, November 18 in Joplin, Missouri. Three teams from the men's and women's regions earn automatic bids to nationals. From there, ten at-large teams will be selected by the NCAA Division II Men's and Women's Cross Country Committee to round out the pack. The top two individuals from non-qualifying teams qualify automatically, as does any individual from non-qualify team who finishes in the top five overall. Eight more selections nationally are also made.
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