Friday, November 11
Albuquerque, NM
11 A.M.
Montana State University
vs
NCAA Mountain Region Championships
Matthew Richtman and Duncan Hamilton
Photo by: Kyle Cajero
Montana State Men Place Fifth, Women 12th at Mountain Regionals
11/11/2022 5:51:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country
Duncan Hamilton and Matthew Richtman went 3-4 to help the men place fifth, while Camila Noe placed 26th to lead the women.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Both Montana State cross country teams improved on their team standings from last year's regional race, as the men's team placed fifth and the women placed 12th at the NCAA Mountain Regionals in Albuquerque, N.M. on Friday.
Going into the race expected to place fifth behind four men's teams ranked in the top-10 of the U.S. Track and Field/Cross Country Coaches' Association national polls, the No. 21 Bobcats finished in fifth place out of 19 teams with 123 points. The finish is the program's best since the 2002 team placed fifth at the Mountain Regionals and subsequently qualified for nationals. MSU's 123 points is the second lowest in program history, trailing the 1995 team's 119 points.
"It's surprising how we were supposed to place fifth coming into this race, and then we ended up placing fifth," Dale Kennedy Director of Track & Field/Cross Country Lyle Weese said. "But if you look at the individual performances, everyone out-performed expectations."
As for the women, their 12th place finish was a two-spot improvement over last season. The Bobcats were third amongst Big Sky schools, trailing Northern Arizona and Weber State.
"Our women's team continued its substantial improvement from last year to this year," Weese said. "Today was a great indicator of what they can do in future years. This season, even when they didn't all have their best races, they ran solid and consistent.
For the men, Duncan Hamilton (3rd, 28:06.9) and Matthew Richtman (4th, 28:07.6) earned all-region honors for the Bobcats; both of them punched their tickets to NCAAs as individuals. With that feat, Hamilton is the first Bobcat in program history to qualify for the NCAA Cross Country Championships three times. Richtman is the third Bobcat to do so multiple times, joining Richtman and Shannon Butler (1990-91).
Both men took starkly different approaches to their top five finishes.
Like he is wont to do, Hamilton took command of the race from the getgo, leading the pack through the first 1,600 meters in 4:37.7. Fending off challengers from New Mexico, Northern Arizona and BYU, Hamilton never fell further than fourth place during the 10-kilometer race. The senior from Bozeman High School would place third in 28:06.9 for his best-ever finish at the regional race.
"The whole time, Duncan looked comfortable and he didn't seem to be overwhelmed," Weese said. "That was a really good sign heading into nationals. I thought he had another great race and I thought today was a great indicator for how well he can do at the national meet."
Richtman's path to the top five, however, was much different. Caught up towards the middle of the pack through the first 1,600 meters, the junior from Elburn, Ill. came through in 67th place with a 1,600-meter split time of 4:43.6. From there, he moved on up as the runners meandered through the North Golf Course. Halfway through the race, Richtman had moved all the way up to second for MSU and 10th overall, yet he still had more left in the tank.
In the last 2,000 meters, Richtman rocketed up six places and finished right on Hamilton's heels for a fourth-place finish in 28:07.6.
"Matt is such a team-centered guy," Weese said. "If the team has to do well, then he has incredible performances to help the team. Last year, he moved up in the last kilometer all the way to 14th because he believed that would help the team make it to nationals. He did the same thing today. His race showed how much he cares about the team and its success."
Ben Perrin (34th place, 28:42.9), Cooper West (37th, 28;47.3) and Levi Taylor (45th, 29:12.5) rounded out MSU's scoring runners. In particular, Weese highlighted West for his second-straight solid race and Taylor for rebounding from a tough showing at the Big Sky Championships and passing four runners in the home stretch to help the team's score.
"Cooper and Levi had great races, which was really important for us," Weese said. "Cooper got out and held his position and Levi did a great job gradually moving up into the top 50."
"Things have really come together for Cooper in championship races this season," Weese added. "It's exciting to see that when the pressure is on, Cooper has excelled."
Over in the women's race, Camila Noe led the Bobcats for the sixth-straight race all season, covering the 6-kilometer course in 20:46.2 to place 26th. She was followed by Lindsey Paulson, whose 21:43.5 time was the fifth-fastest time amongst all freshmen.
"It's really exciting to see Lindsey run because she has run so well and she has been so consistent," Weese said. "She always knows what's going on and she's not overwhelmed by anything. It's great to have her on the team because although she is a freshman, she has a leadership role and she is always composed."
Mya Dube (89th, 22:09.4) finished in MSU's top three for the sixth time all season. A close pack of Bobcats consisting of Ava Weems (92nd, 22:13.9), Alex Moore (93rd, 22:14.0) and Elena Vandersloot (96th, 22:20.7) rounded out the scoring runners for Montana State.
"Individually, Camila did really well," Weese said. "She ran a great race. Lindsey Paulson and Ava Weems ran really well for competing in their first Mountain Regional race. Both of them had solid performances."
The New Mexico women's team won the regional title with 53 points, gapping second-place Utah, which beat Northern Arizona in a tiebreaker with 103 points.
No. 3 Northern Arizona won the men's title with a score of 43 points while No. 2 BYU placed second with 55 points. No. 9 Colorado (97) and No. 5 Air Force (104) rounded out the teams ahead of the Bobcats. It is believed that the Buffaloes and Falcons will qualify as at-large teams for NCAAs.
For now, the men's team will wait. The NCAA Cross Country Championships selection show will be streamed on NCAA.com on Saturday at 3 p.m. MT. There will be a selection show watch party held at the Bobcat Athletic Complex at 2:45 p.m. on Saturday.
Should the Bobcats advance, the NCAA Cross Country Championships will take place in Stillwater, Okla. on Nov. 19.
Going into the race expected to place fifth behind four men's teams ranked in the top-10 of the U.S. Track and Field/Cross Country Coaches' Association national polls, the No. 21 Bobcats finished in fifth place out of 19 teams with 123 points. The finish is the program's best since the 2002 team placed fifth at the Mountain Regionals and subsequently qualified for nationals. MSU's 123 points is the second lowest in program history, trailing the 1995 team's 119 points.
"It's surprising how we were supposed to place fifth coming into this race, and then we ended up placing fifth," Dale Kennedy Director of Track & Field/Cross Country Lyle Weese said. "But if you look at the individual performances, everyone out-performed expectations."
As for the women, their 12th place finish was a two-spot improvement over last season. The Bobcats were third amongst Big Sky schools, trailing Northern Arizona and Weber State.
"Our women's team continued its substantial improvement from last year to this year," Weese said. "Today was a great indicator of what they can do in future years. This season, even when they didn't all have their best races, they ran solid and consistent.
For the men, Duncan Hamilton (3rd, 28:06.9) and Matthew Richtman (4th, 28:07.6) earned all-region honors for the Bobcats; both of them punched their tickets to NCAAs as individuals. With that feat, Hamilton is the first Bobcat in program history to qualify for the NCAA Cross Country Championships three times. Richtman is the third Bobcat to do so multiple times, joining Richtman and Shannon Butler (1990-91).
Both men took starkly different approaches to their top five finishes.
Like he is wont to do, Hamilton took command of the race from the getgo, leading the pack through the first 1,600 meters in 4:37.7. Fending off challengers from New Mexico, Northern Arizona and BYU, Hamilton never fell further than fourth place during the 10-kilometer race. The senior from Bozeman High School would place third in 28:06.9 for his best-ever finish at the regional race.
"The whole time, Duncan looked comfortable and he didn't seem to be overwhelmed," Weese said. "That was a really good sign heading into nationals. I thought he had another great race and I thought today was a great indicator for how well he can do at the national meet."
Richtman's path to the top five, however, was much different. Caught up towards the middle of the pack through the first 1,600 meters, the junior from Elburn, Ill. came through in 67th place with a 1,600-meter split time of 4:43.6. From there, he moved on up as the runners meandered through the North Golf Course. Halfway through the race, Richtman had moved all the way up to second for MSU and 10th overall, yet he still had more left in the tank.
In the last 2,000 meters, Richtman rocketed up six places and finished right on Hamilton's heels for a fourth-place finish in 28:07.6.
"Matt is such a team-centered guy," Weese said. "If the team has to do well, then he has incredible performances to help the team. Last year, he moved up in the last kilometer all the way to 14th because he believed that would help the team make it to nationals. He did the same thing today. His race showed how much he cares about the team and its success."
Ben Perrin (34th place, 28:42.9), Cooper West (37th, 28;47.3) and Levi Taylor (45th, 29:12.5) rounded out MSU's scoring runners. In particular, Weese highlighted West for his second-straight solid race and Taylor for rebounding from a tough showing at the Big Sky Championships and passing four runners in the home stretch to help the team's score.
"Cooper and Levi had great races, which was really important for us," Weese said. "Cooper got out and held his position and Levi did a great job gradually moving up into the top 50."
"Things have really come together for Cooper in championship races this season," Weese added. "It's exciting to see that when the pressure is on, Cooper has excelled."
Over in the women's race, Camila Noe led the Bobcats for the sixth-straight race all season, covering the 6-kilometer course in 20:46.2 to place 26th. She was followed by Lindsey Paulson, whose 21:43.5 time was the fifth-fastest time amongst all freshmen.
"It's really exciting to see Lindsey run because she has run so well and she has been so consistent," Weese said. "She always knows what's going on and she's not overwhelmed by anything. It's great to have her on the team because although she is a freshman, she has a leadership role and she is always composed."
Mya Dube (89th, 22:09.4) finished in MSU's top three for the sixth time all season. A close pack of Bobcats consisting of Ava Weems (92nd, 22:13.9), Alex Moore (93rd, 22:14.0) and Elena Vandersloot (96th, 22:20.7) rounded out the scoring runners for Montana State.
"Individually, Camila did really well," Weese said. "She ran a great race. Lindsey Paulson and Ava Weems ran really well for competing in their first Mountain Regional race. Both of them had solid performances."
The New Mexico women's team won the regional title with 53 points, gapping second-place Utah, which beat Northern Arizona in a tiebreaker with 103 points.
No. 3 Northern Arizona won the men's title with a score of 43 points while No. 2 BYU placed second with 55 points. No. 9 Colorado (97) and No. 5 Air Force (104) rounded out the teams ahead of the Bobcats. It is believed that the Buffaloes and Falcons will qualify as at-large teams for NCAAs.
For now, the men's team will wait. The NCAA Cross Country Championships selection show will be streamed on NCAA.com on Saturday at 3 p.m. MT. There will be a selection show watch party held at the Bobcat Athletic Complex at 2:45 p.m. on Saturday.
Should the Bobcats advance, the NCAA Cross Country Championships will take place in Stillwater, Okla. on Nov. 19.
Big Sky Cross Country Championship
Sunday, October 31
Big Sky Cross Country Championship Preview | Men's Team
Friday, October 27
Dale Kennedy - Media Day | Nov. 12, 2013
Wednesday, November 13
Cristian Soratos - Media Day | Oct. 22, 2013
Wednesday, October 23
