Men's Team Results | Men's Individual Results | Women's Team Results | Women's Individual Results
BILLINGS, Mont. – The Alaska Nanooks men's and women's cross country running teams concluded the 2016 season at the NCAA West Regional Championships on Saturday morning, with the men's team finishing 12th overall and the women placing 22nd. Alaska men's cross country's 12th place finish marks the team's highest finish at the NCAA West Regionals in program history, with junior Alexander Eckert being the first Nanook to cross the finish line in the men's 10km race. Senior Dorothy O'Donnell paced the Nanooks' women's team, finishing 63rd overall in the 6km race.
"It was a good finish to our cross country season, especially our men's team had their best result at the NCAA West Regional Championships in recent memory," head coach Nick Crawford said on Saturday. "The men's team finished 12th overall and the sixth GNAC team just a few points behind the fourth and fifth GNAC teams. This is especially exciting as we moved way up from our eighth place finish at the GNAC Championships two weeks ago and well above our preseason poll position of ninth place."
The Nanooks collected 404 points to rank them 12th overall and sixth amongst fellow Great Northwest Athletic Conference teams. Six of Alaska's seven runners ranked within the top-100 harriers, with the top-five scorers compiling for a total time of 2:42:45.46. Chico State swept the top-three individual spots to place first overall as a team with 45 points.
According to Crawford, the Nooks competed in perfect running conditions with sunny skies and temperatures in the 50s. The Amend Trail is a flat, grass course that led to quick times for all runners. The large group stayed close together in the first two miles, with the leaders not pushing the pace until later.
Eckert finished 58th overall in a field of 168 harriers, posting a 10k time of 31:56.02, averaging a 5:09/M pace. Eckert finished 02:11 behind first-place runner William Reyes, who was the only runner to complete the 10km in less than 30 minutes (29:45.16).
Freshman Lukash Platil placed second among the Nanooks, 77th overall with a time of 32:27.30, while senior Keegan Rankin followed closely behind with a finishing time of 32:38.71, ranking him 82nd overall.
Junior Seiji Takagi (32:46.71) and redshirt -junior Carl Wahlin (32:56.42) placed 91st and 96th, respectively, rounding-out the Nanooks' top-five scorers.
"As we've come to expect all season, the men raced very close together with all five of our scorers finishing within a minute of one another," Crawford said of his men's team. "Our excellent team score really reflected a team effort rather than individual efforts. During the different parts of the race, each of them seemed to have a part that wasn't going so well but they always caught up to a teammate to push one another. While all of the guys had great races today, Alex's race was exceptional. He moved up from finishing over 101st at the NCAA West Regionals last year to 58th this year with really good pacing throughout the race."
On the women's side, the Nanooks placed 22nd of 30 teams at the Championships, combining for 563 points. Only two Nooks finished within the top-100 runners but the top-five scorers combined for total time of 1:59:00.78.
O'Donnell placed 63rd overall with a 6km time of 22:53.98, averaging a 6:07/M pace. O'Donnell's finish among the 204 harriers, was just under two minutes behind first-place overall Laura Aceves (Cal State San Bernadino), who totaled a time of 20:55.95.
Senior Kali Striker placed second among the Nanooks, ranking 90th overall with a time of 23:16.74, while fellow-senior Nichole Bathe placed 124th overall, third among Nooks with a time of 23:57.84. Freshman Brooke Gottmeier (24:19.60) and junior Grace Weller (24:33.55) rounded-out the Nanooks' top-five scorers.
"Today wasn't our best day for our women's team," Crawford said of his women's team. "The women's race started very fast today and I think a few of our women were wiped by the second half of the race. Grace and Brooke had the best personal performances today, rounding out our scoring five."
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks men's and women's cross country running teams, follow @AlaskaNanooksXC on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks XC team page on Facebook.
