Lauren Martin
The Paw Print
On November 6, the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championships was hosted by New Mexico Highlands University. The race was held at Gene Torres Golf Course in Las Vegas, New Mexico. The Grizzlies won their sixth consecutive title and the 33rd for the program overall.
Senior, Ryan McNiff went out with the leading pack of runners. McNiff continued to push the pace and eventually string out the runners over the 8k course. McNiff finished the course in a time of 23:50, four seconds in front of Colorado School of Mines runner, Aaron Swift. McNiff was named the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Runner of the Year.
Craig Huffer was the next runner for the Grizzlies. Huffer finished in fourth place in a time of 24:02. Huffer was a part of the lead pack till McNiff’s surge spread out the field of runners. Keegan Calmes came across the line in sixth place for Adams State. Calmes finished the race in a time of 24:09. Calmes raced in the front of the pack and fell off the fast pace with 800 meters left in the race. Calmes then out kicked Gabe Proctor from Western State College.
Sophomore Edwin Cruz completed the race in a time of 24:14. Cruz finished the race in eighth place closely behind teammate Calmes. Cruz pushed the pace with the front group of Grizzly runners for a majority of the race. Rounding out the top five runners for the Grizzlies was Nathan Sellers. Sellers ran a time of 24:20 earning him eleventh place. Sellers ran a smart, tactical race. Sellers ran in the middle of the pack, passing the runners who went out to fast at the beginning of the 8k race and finishing with a strong kick at the end.
Seniors Brandon Birdsong and Luke Cragg, finished in fourteenth and sixteenth, respectfully. Birdsong completed the course in a time of 24:36. Cragg, closely behind, finished the race in a time of 24:42. Drew Soucy finished in forty-second place. Junior Matt Bond was unable to finish the race due to a small injury within the first mile.
In the open race, Jovanny Godinez finished in second, running the race in a time of 24:54. Godinez was followed closely by teammate David Sanchez. Sanchez finished in third with a time of 24:58.
Head coach, Damon Martin was named RMAC Coach of the Year. Coach Martin has now earned sixty-five RMAC Coach of the Year awards between the men and the women’s programs. Coach Martin said about the men’s performance on Saturday, “I am so proud of the men. They all competed and did what they came here to do. Ryan McNiff showed what I had seen throughout his years here as a Grizzly. We now have to focus in on Regionals and Nationals.”
The Grizzlies will now head to Wayne, Nebraska to compete in the Regional meet on November 20. After Regionals, the team will head to Kentucky to compete in the NCAA Division II National Championships. Nationals will be held on December 4 in Louisville.
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