STILLWATER, Okla. – Backed by an All-America finish from senior Ryan Johnson, the Air Force men’s cross country team captured the program’s best national finish in 55 years this morning (Nov. 19), as it placed seventh at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in Stillwater.
With the finish, the men earned their first top 10 NCAA finish since 2003 (eighth) – and fifth overall, as well as the program’s best team placement since the 1967 squad finished second.
Johnson completed the 10K circuit on Oklahoma State’s campus course in a time of 29:28.0 – the ninth-fastest 10K by a Falcon at any elevation – as he finished 28th in the 255-runner event. The senior, who stayed within the top 50 throughout the race before moving into All-America (top 40) contention in the final 4K, led the Falcons’ scoring lineup to five top-80 finishes, as just over 30 seconds separated the pack.
Classmate Ethan Marshall added a top 50 finish, crossing the finish line in 49th with a time of 29:45.4, while fellow senior Sam Gilman clocked a time of 29:49.4 to finish 57th. Junior Luke Combs, competing in just his second race of the year, finished 70th with a time of 29:55.4, while sophomore Bryce Lentz rounded out the scoring lineup with a 77th-place time of 30:01.7
“Our men executed a strong race today,” Ryan Cole, Air Force’s director of track & field and cross country, said. “We knew where we needed to be early in the run, they found each other and worked together like they have all season. It’s hard to be that close to top four and come up short. But this season has been a very positive step for our program. A significant amount of credit goes to our senior class. They’ve been tremendous. There are also a lot of alums that helped create the culture which has enabled us to become a nationally-competitive program. This has been a fun season. It makes it easy to get excited about next year.”
Juniors Sean Maison and Eli Bennett also completed the 10K course today, finishing 91st (30:10.0) and 108th (30:18.0), respectively.
Second-ranked Northern Arizona and fourth-ranked Oklahoma State both tallied 83 points in the final standings, but NAU claimed the national title following the head-to-head tie breakers. Third-ranked BYU earned a third-place finish with 132 points, while top-ranked Stanford (195 points, fourth) and No. 12 Wake Forest (204, fifth) round out the top five of the 31-team meet. The Falcons, who entered the meet ranked eighth in the national poll, accounted for 264 points to finish seventh – and ahead of two teams ranked higher in the latest rankings: No. 7 Colorado (281, eighth) and No. 5 Tulsa (304, ninth).
In the women’s 6K championship, Halle Hamilton capped her sophomore cross country season by finishing within the top half of the 255-runner field. Cutting more than 40 seconds off her previous trek around the OSU Cross Country Course earlier this fall at the Cowboy Jamboree, Hamilton crossed the finish line in a time of 20:40.3 to finish 107th in her first national meet.
“Halle has had a great fall”, Cole said. “We haven’t had too many women qualify for the NCAA meet as a sophomore. She ran tough today and this experience will definitely help her in future seasons. She’s very motivated to be better. But Halle is also developing into a strong leader by the example she sets, so as she pursues being a stronger runner, she’ll also help make the women around her better.”
Although cross country is over, the indoor track and field season is right around the corner. Air Force will open the 2022-23 campaign on Dec. 2-3, as the team splits for two meets. Part of the squad will host the Air Force Holiday Open, while the rest will travel to Boston for the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener.
With the finish, the men earned their first top 10 NCAA finish since 2003 (eighth) – and fifth overall, as well as the program’s best team placement since the 1967 squad finished second.
Johnson completed the 10K circuit on Oklahoma State’s campus course in a time of 29:28.0 – the ninth-fastest 10K by a Falcon at any elevation – as he finished 28th in the 255-runner event. The senior, who stayed within the top 50 throughout the race before moving into All-America (top 40) contention in the final 4K, led the Falcons’ scoring lineup to five top-80 finishes, as just over 30 seconds separated the pack.
Classmate Ethan Marshall added a top 50 finish, crossing the finish line in 49th with a time of 29:45.4, while fellow senior Sam Gilman clocked a time of 29:49.4 to finish 57th. Junior Luke Combs, competing in just his second race of the year, finished 70th with a time of 29:55.4, while sophomore Bryce Lentz rounded out the scoring lineup with a 77th-place time of 30:01.7
“Our men executed a strong race today,” Ryan Cole, Air Force’s director of track & field and cross country, said. “We knew where we needed to be early in the run, they found each other and worked together like they have all season. It’s hard to be that close to top four and come up short. But this season has been a very positive step for our program. A significant amount of credit goes to our senior class. They’ve been tremendous. There are also a lot of alums that helped create the culture which has enabled us to become a nationally-competitive program. This has been a fun season. It makes it easy to get excited about next year.”
Juniors Sean Maison and Eli Bennett also completed the 10K course today, finishing 91st (30:10.0) and 108th (30:18.0), respectively.
Second-ranked Northern Arizona and fourth-ranked Oklahoma State both tallied 83 points in the final standings, but NAU claimed the national title following the head-to-head tie breakers. Third-ranked BYU earned a third-place finish with 132 points, while top-ranked Stanford (195 points, fourth) and No. 12 Wake Forest (204, fifth) round out the top five of the 31-team meet. The Falcons, who entered the meet ranked eighth in the national poll, accounted for 264 points to finish seventh – and ahead of two teams ranked higher in the latest rankings: No. 7 Colorado (281, eighth) and No. 5 Tulsa (304, ninth).
In the women’s 6K championship, Halle Hamilton capped her sophomore cross country season by finishing within the top half of the 255-runner field. Cutting more than 40 seconds off her previous trek around the OSU Cross Country Course earlier this fall at the Cowboy Jamboree, Hamilton crossed the finish line in a time of 20:40.3 to finish 107th in her first national meet.
“Halle has had a great fall”, Cole said. “We haven’t had too many women qualify for the NCAA meet as a sophomore. She ran tough today and this experience will definitely help her in future seasons. She’s very motivated to be better. But Halle is also developing into a strong leader by the example she sets, so as she pursues being a stronger runner, she’ll also help make the women around her better.”
Although cross country is over, the indoor track and field season is right around the corner. Air Force will open the 2022-23 campaign on Dec. 2-3, as the team splits for two meets. Part of the squad will host the Air Force Holiday Open, while the rest will travel to Boston for the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener.
