Cross Country Accomplishes Conference Championship Three-Peat

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (October 27, 2018) – The Northern Arizona University men's cross country team will be heading back to Flagstaff with its third Big Sky Conference title in a row after competing in the conference championships in Sacramento, Calif., at the Haggin Oaks Golf Course.
 
Senior All-American Matt Baxter captured the individual men's title at the event. On the women's side freshman Jesselyn Bries was awarded the Big Sky Female Freshman Athlete of the Year.
 
"This performance was another step for the men's team today," said Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Michael Smith. "I'm pleased with where we are heading into the Regional meet."
 
Coming into the weekend all eyes were on the matchup between NAU and rival Southern Utah on both sides. By the end of the first mile in the men's race it was clear that the Lumberjack men are still the dominant team in the Big Sky Conference. Four NAU jerseys were at least ten seconds ahead of the next closest athlete.
 
NAU scored only 21 points in the 8K event, 49 points better than the second place Weber State. Southern Utah would end up in third place overall as a team with 76 points.
 
Baxter was the first to cross the finish line with a time of 22:46.0, winning his first individual Big Sky Championship.
 
"The individual title is something that has alluded me for a while so it meant a lot for me to get it today," said Baxter. "The team had a great showing and we got our job done out there. The team conference is a big deal to us and gives us a lot of confidence heading into the final two races of the year."
 
As if it could have played out any other way fellow senior All-American Tyler Day finished the event in second place only four and a half seconds behind Baxter (22:50.5). Day was last year's first place individual finisher. Day has yet to finish an event outside of the top ten this year.
 
One of the biggest surprises of the day was sophomore Blaise Ferro's third place finish at 23:06.6. Ferro has been a key contributor throughout the season for the 'Jacks and will likely play an important role as NAU enter NCAA Regionals and Championships in the next month.
 
Fourth-place finisher Geordie Beamish ended the race at 23:29.2. For the majority of the first two laps around the course Beamish was right next to Day and Baxter. It was clear that the junior was competing at a level equal to that of his senior teammates.
 
NAU's youngest runner, freshman Ryan Raff, rounded out the scorers for the Lumberjacks coming in 11^th place at 24:13.9. Raff has been one of the brightest young competitors in the Big Sky and finished only 13.9 seconds behind Weber State's freshman Christian Allen (8^th place).
 
The next Lumberjack to come in was senior Kyle Havriliak. Havriliak's time of 24:24.9 earned him a spot of 20^th place on the individual leaderboard.
 
This past week's US Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association (USTFCCCA) Male Athlete of the Week, redshirt freshman Jack Shea, ended the 8K race in 33^rd place with a final time of 25:00.9.
 
The Big Sky Conference Championships may have been the most impressive team performance in what has been shaping up to be a historic season for Northern Arizona University cross country.
 
"I was pleased to see the continued execution by the men today," said assistant coach Jarred Cornfield. "They have built a culture around bringing a business like attitude to meets and keeping each other accountable to a bar that has been set high. Conference championships were no exception and we are always thrilled to come away with the Big Sky title."
 
Not to be outdone by the men, women's squad member freshman Bries was the first freshman female athlete to complete the 5K race. Her time of 16:52.0 earned her a seventh place finish and resulted in her being honored as the 2018 Big Sky Conference Female Freshman Athlete of the Year.
 
"Jesselyn's performance was outstanding," said assistant coach Becca DeLoache. "She has improved week after week which is directly correlated to her training. Her performance today was a culmination of her training and current mindset. She raced with confidence and composure believing in herself even when fatigue set in."
 
"Going into this race I was not expecting to win Female Freshman Athlete of the Year," said Bries. "This only makes me excited for the future."
 
"Her effort today was the culmination of many things," added DeLoache. "She no doubt earned the award and we are so proud of her."
 
Last year men's runner Luis Grijalva won the male equivalent of the award. However, he and senior Peter Lomong did not compete in the race today.
 
Sophomore Pipi Eitel ran the 5K in 17:06.6, which lead to her being the second individual finisher for the women's team. The 11^th place finish was just over three seconds faster than NAU's next runner sophomore Jessa Hanson (13^th, 17:09.9).
 
Another freshman, Cassi Land, would run in at 16^th place (17:17.6). Sophomore Delaney Rasmussen was barely even a full second behind her coming in at 18^th place (17:18.7). Rasmussen would be the last runner to score points for NAU.
 
George Kyte Classic first place runner sophomore Hannah Behunin was the last Lumberjack to run in and did so in 17:31.4, acquiring a 27^th place finish.
 
The women's team ended the conference championship race with a total of 65 points. Despite being one of the most impressive team performances the women have had all season the crew would take second place at the event. Rival Southern Utah scored only 28 points to win the conference title, snapping NAU's two-year streak of winning the Big Sky championship.
 
Instead of a vibe of disappointment and negativity the women's team immediately looked motivated and ready to train and prepare for the rest of the season and, in the long term, return next season with an extra ounce of determination to dethrone the Thunderbirds.  
 
"Our women ran tough for a second place finish against a strong nationally ranked team in Southern Utah," said Smith. "This group is primarily made up of underclassmen. They are continuing on their path gaining experience and confidence. We are making improvements in the exact places we need to and I am so proud of them."
 
The program leaves Sacramento with its mind on the national level yet again. The next event the team will compete at will be NCAA Mountain Regionals in Provo, Utah on Nov. 9^th. The second ranked team in the USTFCCCA National Men's Coaches' Poll, BYU, will host the event and give the Lumberjacks a chance to compete against the team before NCAA Championships on Nov. 17^th in Madison, Wis.
 
The Mountain Region is one of the toughest and most packed groups in all of NCAA Division I cross country and will give NAU a good look at the type of competition they will see again at Nationals.