Bobcat Men Finish First, Noe Leads MSU Women at Cross Country Classic

Photo by: Sam Bloom

Bobcat Men Finish First, Noe Leads MSU Women at Cross Country Classic

9/21/2019 5:40:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country

Montana wrapped up action at its annual home meet at Bridger Creek on Saturday

By: Andrew Pedersen

BOZEMAN, Mont. – Montana State claimed two first-place runners, including a team first-place showing, to highlight the MSU Cross Country Classic at Bridger Creek Golf Course on Saturday, Sept. 21.

The Montana men's squad topped Utah State by a 28-36 margin to take first in the team standings of the 5-mile race that was ran in low temperatures and under heavy rain. The Bobcats came into the meet behind the Aggies in the USTFCCCA Mountain Region rankings.

"The men's race was really exciting," said Lyle Weese. "Utah State, especially, is a very strong team and will be one of the better teams in our region. To be competitive with them and come out with a victory is very exciting. Overall just a great team performance and I'm excited about what we can do this year."

Junior Collin Buck took first in the men's race by completing a time of 24 minutes, 50.20 seconds. It was Buck's opening meet of the 2019 season and was his first time taking first in a collegiate meet.

"I was just trying to go out fast and at a pace that I felt comfortable with," Buck said. "I saw the Utah state guys push up at the beginning, and I knew they were going to have a little bit more into the race speed, so I didn't feel like leaving it to the last mile."

Buck was followed by MSU sophomore Duncan Hamilton who finished in a time of 25:03.00. Senior Ty Mogan (25:12.00) placed fourth overall, Cooper West (25:22.90) took seventh and Isaac Schmidt (25:54.30) rounded out MSU's scoring lineup.

"It was definitely really exciting having a huge pack right up at the front," Buck said of the men's team's performance. "Going 1-2-4 is really great. When we get into a bigger meet, I think our lead pack will do a lot more than what it did in a race with fewer people. I think it's going to be really strong with quite a few more teams."

Cameron Carroll and Gannon Chamberlain were among MSU's top seven finishers. Carroll finished 15th by crossing the line in 25:55.10 and Chamberlain took 23rd with a mark of 26.34.60. Teagan Olson also completed his appearance in the race by taking 36th with a time of 26:45.60.

The women's race was controlled from the get-go by Bozeman native Camila Noe. She paced the field and eventually came away with a first-place finish in a time of 17:07.70. It was her first cross country showing for the Bobcats.

"I was happy with my race," Noe said following her performance. "It was a good effort considering the conditions. I actually kind of like this weather, but it was a bit soggy.

"I'm just going to keep doing what I'm doing. Keep building and trust Lyle (Weese's) training (plan)."

The Bobcat women finished third in the team standings. Utah State registered 30 points, followed by Montana's 57 and MSU's 62.

Bobcat senior Anna French earned a top-10 showing by finishing with a time of 17:46.00 and eventually placed 10th. Gillian Maness (18:07.10), Madison Liechty (18:11.00) and Trisha Carlson (18:15.40) took 15th, 17th and 20th to round out MSU's scorers in the team standings. Kathleen Glockner placed 24th overall with a mark of 18:26.80.

"Camila went right to the front at the start of the race and just led from start to finish," Weese said. "She had an incredible race which was great to see. Anna French I thought did a really nice job of racing and moving up and got in there with some high quality opponents."