Air Force Academy

Oct. 11, 2006

The Air Force cross country team travels to Terre Haute, Ind., this weekend for the first of two national meets hosted by Indiana State University. The Falcons will compete in the prestigious Pre-NCAA Meet on Saturday, Oct. 14, at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course - home course of the 2006 NCAA Championships.

Weekly Release 05: at Pre-National Meet
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HISTORY 101: With four of the five scoring runners finishing within the top-100, the Air Force men's cross country team finished 10th at the annual invitation-only meet in 2005.

BALCAO WINS WEEKLY HONOR: Scott Balcao was named the Mountain West Conference men's cross country athlete of the week, the league office announced Oct. 10. He was the first Falcon to cross the finish line at the Fort Hays State Tiger Invitational, leading the Air force to its third straight team title at that meet. Clocking a time of 26:18, Balcao finished ninth in the 122-member race.

STILL ROLLING: For the third-straight season, the Air Force men won the Fort Hays State Tiger Invitational.  Backed by a ninth-place finish from sophomore Scott Balcao, the Falcons totaled 78 points to win the 11-team meet.

MORE FROM FORT HAYS: Scott Balcao clocked 26:18 to finish ninth in the 8k race.  Thomas Richter placed 17th, with a time of 27:09, while Zachary Nordahl was close behind with a time of 27:17 to finish 19th. Daniel Castle and Ryan Workman place 22nd and 23rd, with respective times of 27:16 and 27:18 to round out the Falcons' scoring runners. The Falcons sent just two runners to Kansas in the women's field.  Freshman Sara Juback finished 30th in 20:19, while sophomore Jamie Illig placed 53rd with a time of 21:18.

ON THE HORIZON: The younger members of the Falcons' team will host the Air Force Open on Saturday, Oct. 21, at North Monument Valley Park in Colorado Springs. The rest of the Air Force team returns to Salt Lake City the following week (Oct. 28) for the 2006 MWC Championships.