Friday, September 30
Missoula, MT
10:30 a.m. (W), 11:15 a.m. (M)
Montana State University
at
Montana Invitational
Madison Liechty and Christie Schiel
Photo by: Kelly Gorham
Bobcats Cross Country Travels to Missoula for Montana Invitational Friday
9/28/2016 12:27:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country, Cross Country
Montana State cross country teams look to improve in their second meet of the season, the Montana Invitational
BOZEMAN, Montana – The Montana State University cross country teams look to improve in their second meet of the season as the Bobcats travel to Missoula for the Montana Invitational. The women's six-kilometer race opens competition at 10:30 a.m. at the University of Montana Golf Course, with the men's 8k race following at 11:15 a.m.
The Montana Invitational will be scored as duals and includes host Montana along with Gonzaga as Division I participants. Gonzaga's men's squad was ranked 12th in the West Region in USTFCCCA's most recent poll, while MSU's women's team came in at 11th in the Mountain Region.
"The (first two) meets (of the season) are very different in terms of levels of competition and number of teams competing," Bobcats cross country head coach Lyle Weese said. "Our meet had a lot of teams, it was really competitive, it was in some ways a pretty difficult way to start the season. This meet at the University of Montana will be a lot smaller, fewer number of teams, so it will be an opportunity for us to compete in a more dual meet situation rather than our meet."
The Bobcats opened their season by hosting the 40th Montana State-Bozeman Running Co. Invitational.
The men's squad finished fourth out of eight squads and the women's team placed fifth out of nine teams that competed. Ty Mogan paced the MSU men by finishing sixth overall with a time of 24.51. He was followed in the Bobcats' top seven by Zachary Kughn, Adam Wollant, Anthony Schmalz, Noah Kirkland, Cameron Carroll and Martin Ponce.
Weese's men's team looks to see progress in its second meet of the year. The Bobcats add freshman Isaac Barville – after previously running unattached – to the lineup and now have the experience of running in a prior meet this season.
"I've seen dramatic improvement from our practices leading into the first meet to the practices leading into our second meet," Weese said. "Sometimes, even though training may go well over the summer and into the fall, that first meet can remind you how difficult it is. I'm really looking for a large improvement. Some guys did pretty well in the first meet, but that whole pack from 2-10 can be significantly improved for this next meet."
The Bobcats' women's team was led by Alyssa Snyder who finished 10th overall with a time of 17.10. She was followed by MSU's top seven of Layne Oliver, Madison Liechty, Louisa Serpe, Kelsi Lasota, Kimberly Parsell and Sierra Tucker.
On a roster that features 13 underclassmen and just 4 upperclassmen, the dual meet will be a big difference compared to the competition and number of teams featured at the MSU Invite.
"This meet will be I think will be a little more comfortable for the women's team," Weese said. "We have a lot of girls that are coming from a mid-distance background, so they're use to the shorter events. Their confidence isn't always as high in the longer distance events. That combined with running in a smaller field and being more head-to-head, I think the format of competing in a more dual-meet like setting will benefit us."
Following the Montana Invitational, the Bobcats head to the Pre-National Invitational in Terre Haute, Indiana, on Oct. 15, the site of this year's NCAA Cross Country Championships.
The Montana Invitational will be scored as duals and includes host Montana along with Gonzaga as Division I participants. Gonzaga's men's squad was ranked 12th in the West Region in USTFCCCA's most recent poll, while MSU's women's team came in at 11th in the Mountain Region.
"The (first two) meets (of the season) are very different in terms of levels of competition and number of teams competing," Bobcats cross country head coach Lyle Weese said. "Our meet had a lot of teams, it was really competitive, it was in some ways a pretty difficult way to start the season. This meet at the University of Montana will be a lot smaller, fewer number of teams, so it will be an opportunity for us to compete in a more dual meet situation rather than our meet."
The Bobcats opened their season by hosting the 40th Montana State-Bozeman Running Co. Invitational.
The men's squad finished fourth out of eight squads and the women's team placed fifth out of nine teams that competed. Ty Mogan paced the MSU men by finishing sixth overall with a time of 24.51. He was followed in the Bobcats' top seven by Zachary Kughn, Adam Wollant, Anthony Schmalz, Noah Kirkland, Cameron Carroll and Martin Ponce.
Weese's men's team looks to see progress in its second meet of the year. The Bobcats add freshman Isaac Barville – after previously running unattached – to the lineup and now have the experience of running in a prior meet this season.
"I've seen dramatic improvement from our practices leading into the first meet to the practices leading into our second meet," Weese said. "Sometimes, even though training may go well over the summer and into the fall, that first meet can remind you how difficult it is. I'm really looking for a large improvement. Some guys did pretty well in the first meet, but that whole pack from 2-10 can be significantly improved for this next meet."
The Bobcats' women's team was led by Alyssa Snyder who finished 10th overall with a time of 17.10. She was followed by MSU's top seven of Layne Oliver, Madison Liechty, Louisa Serpe, Kelsi Lasota, Kimberly Parsell and Sierra Tucker.
On a roster that features 13 underclassmen and just 4 upperclassmen, the dual meet will be a big difference compared to the competition and number of teams featured at the MSU Invite.
"This meet will be I think will be a little more comfortable for the women's team," Weese said. "We have a lot of girls that are coming from a mid-distance background, so they're use to the shorter events. Their confidence isn't always as high in the longer distance events. That combined with running in a smaller field and being more head-to-head, I think the format of competing in a more dual-meet like setting will benefit us."
Following the Montana Invitational, the Bobcats head to the Pre-National Invitational in Terre Haute, Indiana, on Oct. 15, the site of this year's NCAA Cross Country Championships.
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
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