Jacket Runners Aim for Conference Crown (10/19/06)

BILLINGS, MT – The Montana State-Billings cross-country teams bid farewell to the Heartland Conference this weekend, and confidence is running high among the Jacket harriers that they can go out with a bang.  MSUB, which will join the Great Northwest Athletic Conference next year, hosts the Heartland Conference Championships this Saturday at Riverfront Park in Billings.  The first race is scheduled for 10:00 a.m.

Coach Dave Coppock has spent a lot of time analyzing the numbers this week, and he thinks the Yellowjackets have as good a chance as they ever have to hoist a conference championship plaque this weekend.

“We haven’t been on a fast course all season, and we’ve run against primarily Division I and some nationally-ranked NAIA teams,” says Coppock.  “As a result we don’t usually stand out in the race results.  But if you look deeper into the numbers and times, we can put all five runners ahead of most of the Heartland schools’ second or third runners.  On paper, at least, we can win this.  The weather is expected to deteriorate significantly by Saturday, but when you’ve got a group of Montana runners, some from the Highline, that turns into an advantage.”

The weather forecast, if it holds, may certainly play to the advantage of the Yellowjackets.  There is a 60-percent chance of rain on Friday and it could turn to snow by Saturday morning with Saturday’s high temperature predicted to be somewhere in the 30s.  Those may not be the most comfortable conditions for runners from Texas, Oklahoma and Missouri.  Of course, two years ago at the Pacific West Conference Championships in Billings, the temperatures were in the 30s and Chelsea Smith of BYU-Hawaii set a course record of 16:57 for 5,000 meters.  Then again, Smith did go on to win her second-straight National Championship that year.

The women’s race will include the Jackets, University of the Incarnate Word (TX), Lincoln University (MO), St. Mary’s University (TX), Dallas Baptist University, Oklahoma Panhandle State University, and St. Edward’s University (TX).  Newman University (KS) will have nine runners in the race but will not be competing for the team championship.  Newman is a provisional member of the Heartland Conference and is not eligible for team championships.

The men’s race will include the Jackets, St. Mary’s University, University of the Incarnate Word, Dallas Baptist University, Oklahoma Panhandle State University, and St. Edward’s University.  Newman University will have eight runners in the race.

Coppock thinks the Yellowjacket women have a good chance to compete for the team title with a balanced team.  The Lady Jackets haven’t had a standout runner this season, but their top five runners have been running in a pack almost every race.  That means an individual title may be tough to come by, but a team title is a possibility.

“Our biggest hopes are pinned to the women’s team, who finished fourth last year,” says Coppock.  “They were picked to finish third in the preseason poll, but that was based on last year’s finish.  We knew from the first week of practice that this year’s team was vastly different.  Our team is much deeper and we’re solid from our first through fifth runners, a factor that wins cross-country meets.”

The Lady Jackets are led by freshman Teri Lea McCormick (Hardin, MT).  In her last race at Black Hills State, she finished the 4K course in 17:21.  She was followed closely by fellow freshman Crystal Roseberry (Chinook, MT) and senior Tiffany Piplica (Riverton, WY).  Erin Mueller (Billings, MT) and Colleen Dalimata (Columbia Falls, MT) round out the Jackets’ top five runners.  The time separating those five has been only about a minute and a half.

Dallas Baptist, Incarnate Word and St. Mary’s will be the other likely contenders for the women’s team title.  In the individual race, Coppock says the runners to watch are Lincoln’s Nessa Paul and Melishia Spencer, who finished second and fifth respectively at last year’s conference championship.  Lacey Morrison of Dallas Baptist, Klara Garcia of Incarnate Word, and Tara Wicketts and Amy Crissman of St. Mary’s will also contend for top individual honors.

On the men’s side, Coppock says the Yellowjackets’ chances are less defined.  MSUB finished second in the team standings at last year’s conference championship and was picked in the preseason coaches’ poll to finish second again.  But Coppock feels the Jackets will have to run a good race to duplicate or improve on last year’s finish.

“Jarred Rensvold (Wolf Point, MT) and Matt Roseberry (Chinook, MT) have led the men all season and are running much improved over last year,” says Coppock.  “It’s going to come down to what kind of race Joe Kragt (Worden, MT), Andy Zoeller (Billings, MT) and Abram Hagstrom (Billings, MT) can put together.  We raced five weeks in a row this season on tough, hilly courses and finally had a break last week.  I pushed them about as far as they could go until we finally tapered off, so we’re expecting to see some good efforts out there.”

Dallas Baptist and Incarnate Word should be the favorites in the men’s team race.  St. Edward’s has a pair strong runners and a large team and could challenge for the top spot as well.  There are a handful of runners who should be contending for all-conference honors based on this season’s times.  They include Felix Rodriguez and Garrett Sage of Dallas Baptist, David Fuentes and James Cotter of St. Edward’s, Blake Henry of Newman, Shayn Weidner of Incarnate Word, and Rensvold and Roseberry from MSUB.