Many of the top cross-country teams in the nation will be in Durango to run in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championships on Saturday at the Hillcrest Golf Club.
The men will race in the conference championship at noon, followed by the women at 12:50 p.m.
The conference features 11 nationally ranked men’s and women’s teams, including both No. 1 teams. The women’s field includes the returning national champion and unanimous No. 1 ranked Adams State University. No. 3 Colorado School of Mines, No. 4 University of Colorado Colorado Springs, No. 9 Western Colorado University, No 12 Colorado Christian and No. 22 CSU Pueblo will also be part of the strong field.
The men’s field will include No. 1 Colorado School of Mines, No. 2 Adams, No. 9 Western, No. 10 CCU and No. 16 UCCS.
“There are five RMAC teams ranked in the top 16 nationally and another that has been in the national poll earlier this year,” said FLC head men’s coach Josh Coon. “This is hands down the best DII conference in the country.”
The Skyhawks, however, are ready for the challenge.
“We have five guys in the top 25 all time 8K list at FLC , then we have another solid 6-9 that could end up scoring for us,” Coon said. “Times don’t matter on a strength course like ours but the point is that we have some of the best FLC harriers we’ve ever had right now. More importantly this team has been on point in their character, teamwork, lifestyle and in training all summer (and) fall. They are prepared and ready to run with Skyhawk pride.”
Ethan Bartlett will lead the FLC men after setting a new school record in the 8K earlier this season at the UC Riverside Highlander Invitational of 24 minutes, 11.5 seconds.
Caden Resendez, Cebastian Marquez, Max Robinson and Bean Minor also scored for FLC in California.
At the same race, Katie Fankhouser set an FLC women’s record in the 6K: 20:48.4.
Esther Beck followed in 21:51.5, the school’s fifth fastest all-time 6K while Angel Curly clocked a 22:00.6, eighth all-time for the Skyhawks.
The FLC men averaged 25:04 at the Highlander while the women average time was 21:58.
“These women rewrote the record book today, and we will use this momentum moving forward toward the RMAC and regional championships,” said women’s coach Shawn Jakubowski after the race. “The team is leaving California happy but not satisfied. The RMAC is the toughest conference in the country, and we just made it a little stronger. In a few weeks, we plan to make some noise at home.”
The conference championships will also help determine which teams qualify for nationals. The regional championship in two weeks is the most important qualifier, but the head-to-head results from the RMAC will go on the teams’ resumes and is a deciding factor for at-large bids.
The last time FLC hosted the RMAC championship cross-country meet was back in 2007. The conference championship’s location rotates alphabetically, so it will visit all 15 member schools before returning to Durango again. The
“Our runners have been very excited all fall for this,” Coon said. “This team has believed and worked incredibly hard this fall. No matter where the outcomes land they can be at peace knowing that.”
