WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY

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1 WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY M E N S & W O M E N S C R O S S C O U N T R Y For Release: Thursday, September 18, Weber State Men s & Women s Cross Country Schedule Date Meet Site Aug State Inv. Men 1st / Women 2nd Sept State Inv. Bozeman, MT Oct Dame Inv. South Bend, IN Oct Valley Inv. Orem, UT Oct Meet Terre Haute, IN Nov Sky Championships Portland, OR Nov Mt. Region Meet Fort Collins, CO Nov Division I Champs. Terre Haute, IN Weber State Quick Facts Location:...Ogden, Utah Enrollment:...18,300 Nickname:...Wildcats Conference:... Big Sky Athletic Director:... Jerry Graybeal Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations:... Brad Larsen Cross Country Contact:... Brad Larsen ... blarsen3@weber.edu Phone:...(801) Fax:... (801) Website:... weberstatesports.com Address: University Circle...Ogden, Utah Cross Country Head Coach:...Paul Pilkington Pilkington Phone:... (801) Women s Track Head Coach:... Jim Blaisdell Men s Head Track Coach:... Dan Walker 2007 Men s Big Sky XC Finish:... 2nd 2007 Women s Big Sky XC Finish:... 2nd Men s Big Sky Cross Country titles: (2006, 1997, 1991, 1990, 1989, 1977, 1973) Women s Big Sky Cross Country titles: (2006, 2000, 1997, 1993) T H I S W E E STATE UNIVERSITY INVITATIONAL Bozeman, Montana / Bridger Creek Golf Course Saturday, September 20, 2008 Men: 5 Miles - 9:00 a.m. (MDT) / Women: 3 miles - 9:40 a.m. (MDT) WILDCATS AT MONTANA STATE INVITATIONAL ON SATURDAY Weber State s men s and women s cross country teams travel north to Bozeman, Montana for the Montana State University Invitational this coming Saturday, September The men s five mile race begins at 9:00 a.m. followed by the women s three mile race at 9:40 a.m.... The meet is being held at the Bridger Creek Golf Course.... Teams from host Montana State, along with Montana, Wyoming, Utah State, Southern Utah, Westminister College, Carroll College will be in the field. The University of Utah will compete in the women s race as well. M E N The Wildcats are the defending MSU Invitational champions. Last year the Cats five runners in the top ten for a 20 point total in the 11-team race. Monatna was second (34), followed by Utah State (39), Montana State (43) and Wyomiong (55).... Wyoming s Mark Korir won the race in a time of 24: He back this year to defend his individual crown.... WSU was led by BRYANT JENSEN (24:39.00) who placed third and STEVE SHEPHERD (24:40.00) who was fourth. This will be a good test for us to see how we fare with a full squad, said head coach Paul Pilkington. We have David Olson back after healing from an injuried nose sustained at work. We are running freshman Trevor Ricks this week. He ran unattaached two weeks ago but has made some tremendous improvement over the last 14 days and I feel confident about his ability to step in and contribute. Korir from Wyoming is a two-time all-america runner in cross country. Pilkington said he will provide a good test for his front runners, especially Bryant Jensen. Bryant ran 25 seconds behind him in this race last year, so now we see what kind of improvement he s made over the course of a year. said Pilkington. The Wildcats will go with: Bryan Jensen Sr. Farr West, Utah Fremont HS David Olson Sr. Colorado Springs, Colorado Lewis Palmer HS Bob Lambert Jr. West Jordan, Utah West Jordan HS Mike Hardy Fr. Morgan, Utah Morgan HS Jace Nye Jr. Kaysville, Utah Davis HS Chris Burnett RsFr. Farmington, Utah Davis HS Trevor Ricks Fr. Alpine, Wyoming Star Valley HS W OM E N Utah State is the defending team champion. Last year the Aggies scored 29 points. Montana was second (37) and Weber State was third (46) despite a 1-2 finish by Sariah Long (16:38.00) and Morgan Haws (16:58.00). Long had graduated and Haws is not back this season, so there will be a new individual champion this go around.

2 2008 Big Sky Cross Country Women s Pre-Season Coaches Poll Team... 1st Pl. Vts...Points 1. Northern Arizona... (8) WEBER STATE... (1) Montana Montana State Eastern Washington Sacramento State Idaho State Portland State Northern Colorado Big Sky Cross Country Men s Pre-Season Coaches Poll Team... 1st Pl. Vts...Points 1. Northern Arizona... (7) WEBER STATE... (2) Montana State Montana Sacramento State Eastern Washington Idaho State Portland State Northern Colorado...11 Head Coach Paul Pilkington Both the Weber State men s and women s cross country teams are coach by Paul Pilkington who his in his 2nd season as head coach at Weber State. He was named the head coach in December 2006, after serving as assistant coach for the past two seasons. In addition, he will also serve as an assistant coach for the men s and women s track and field teams, working specifically with the distance runners. As an assistant coach Pilkington helped the men s and women s teams win the Big Sky Cross Country Championship in Pilkington was also an assistant coach at Weber State from From he served as the head cross country coach at the University of Illinois where he coached two athletes to the NCAA Championship and helped one athlete qualify for the USA national team for the World Cross Country Championships. Pilkington, a native of Blackfoot, Idaho, ran track and field at the College of Southern Idaho where he was coached by Jim Blaisdell. At Southern Idaho he was a NJCAA All-American in the steeplechase. Pilkington then ran track at Weber State, where he graduated in He also earned All-American honors in the steeplechase. Pilkington is a well-known marathon runner and in 1994 he was named the USA Track and Field marathon national champion, the same year he won the Los Angeles Marathon. He is a four-time Olympic Trials qualifier and in 1995 he was a member of the US World Championship team. He has top ten finishes in marathons in London, Berlin, Moscow, Venice, San Francisco, Houston, and Minneapolis. I ve seen a gradual improvement over the last two weeks, said Pilkington. We are getting stronger each practice. Haley Reeves has had some breathing difficulties but is doing much better. She will be running for the first time this season. Three of our seven runners will be freshman, so again, this will be another learning experience for them. The Wildcats will go with: Natalie Haws Fr. Kaysville, Utah Davis HS Amy Cook Sr. Kennewick, Washington Kamiakin HS Cassie Olson Jr. West Haven, Utah Fremont HS Katie Thompson Jr. Ogden, Utah Fremont HS Haley Reeves So. North Ogden, Utah Weber HS Laken Skidmore Fr. Terreton, Idaho West Jefferson HS Loren Storey Fr. Kaysville, Utah Davis HS NEXT MEET The Wildcats will be running at the NOTRE DAME INVITATIONAL on Friday, October 3, 2008 in South Bend, Indiana. PILKINGTON BEGINS HIS SECOND SEASON Former Weber State standout runner, PAUL PILKINGTON, begins his second season as head coach of both the women s and men s cross country teams. Pilkington also serves as the distance coach for both the men s and women s indoor / outdoor track and field teams as well.... Last year in his first season, both the women and men finished second in the Big Sky Conference Cross Country championships.... Three individuals from those teams participated in the 2007 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championship. Sariah Long and Morgan Haws ran in the women s race, while Pilkington s son, Seth, competed on the men s side. Long finished 54th and Haws, 88th. Pilkington (Seth) finished 26th overall earning all- America honors WOMEN S PREVIEW The Wildcats lose veterans Sariah Long (graduation) and Morgan Haws (LDS Church mission) and have just seven runners listed on the 2008 roster. We obviously don t have a lot of depth this season, said Pilkington. Morgan would have been our cornerstone runner had she stayed but we respect her decision and look forward to her return for the 2010 season. With that in mind, Pilkington is relying on senior Amy Cook (Kennewick, Washington), Cassie Olson (Jr. / West Haven, Utah) and Katie Thompson (Jr. Ogden, Utah) to carry the load. Those three are solid runners and I would expect them to make improvement over last season, said Pilkington. Haley Reeves ran well as a freshman but has had some health problems coming into the season and will miss at least this week s meet. Reeves (Soph. / North Ogden, Utah) has some respiratory problems which doctors are currently treating. She hopes to resume training within the next couple of weeks. Pilkington has high hopes for a trio of freshmen. Natalie Haws ( Kaysville, Utah / Davis HS), Laken Skidmore (Terreton, Idaho / West Jefferson HS) and Loren Storey (Kaysville, Utah / Davis HS). We are throwing those three right into the fire to see how they react and run, Pilkington said. They ve all had solid Fall camps and I expect all three will improve with each meet.

3 MEN S PREVIEW The Wildcats return seven letter winners from last year s team, but will be without the services of All-American Seth Pilkington and veteran Bret Ferrier. Both runners graduated. Seth and Bret each had a solid career at Weber State and were tremendous individual and team runners. They will be missed. Pilkington said. But, we have a solid nucleus of veterans who have been in local and regional races and they know how and when to run, so isn t like the cupboard is bare, we ve got some excellent potential to become a good team. David Olson (Sr. / Colorado Springs, Colorado) is the top returnee. Olson placed 10th at the 2007 Big Sky meet. Bryant Jensen ( Sr. / Farr West, Utah) has had an outstanding Summer of workouts and looks to have an even better 2008 campaign. Jensen placed 14th in the Big Sky meet last season. David and Bryant have each had a good Summer and they will be among the leaders of this team, Pilkington said. Steve Shepherd is capable of a big season as is Jace Nye. Chris Burnett, who red-shirted last season, has come back strong. Todd Gilbert, Parry Higginson and Bob Lambert are good technical runners who know how to pack together. This is going to be an interesting group to coach. Pilkington also had high praise for freshman Mike Hardy from Morgan, Utah. He said Hardy has come in and run...like a veteran. and will push the upper classmen. The U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Regional Division I Cross Country Rankings WOMEN MOUNTAIN REGION MEN 1. Colorado State 1. Colorado 2. Texas Tech 2. New Mexico 3. Northern Arizona 3. Northern Arizona 4. New Mexico 4. Texas-El Paso 5. BYU 5. BYU 6. Colorado 6. Air Force 7. Utah State 7. WEBER STATE 8. Nevada 8. Wyoming 9. WEBER STATE 9. Montana State 10. Utah 10. Utah State 11. Southern Utah 11. Texas Tech 12. Wyoming 12. Colorado State 13. New Mexico State 13. Southern Utah 14. Air Force 14. Montana 15. Montana State 15. New Mexico State

4 2008 WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY WOMEN S AND MEN S CROSS COUNTRY ROSTERS W O M E N NAME CL HOMETOWN HS/JC Amy Cook Sr. Kennewick, Washington Kamiakin Natalie Haws Fr. Kaysvile, Utah Davis Kristilyn Jeffries RsFr. Las Vegas, Nevada Palos Verde Cassie Olson Jr. West Haven, Utah Fremont Haley Reeves So. North Ogden, Utah Weber Laken Skidmore Fr. Terreton, Idaho West Jefferson Loren Storey Fr. Kaysville, Utah Davis Courtney Shipman RsFr. Saratoga, Wyoming Saratoga Katie Thompson Jr. Ogden, Utah Fremont M E N NAME CL HOMETOWN HS/JC Chris Burnett RsFr. Farmington, Utah Davis John Coyle Fr. Coeur d Alene, Idaho Lake City Kevin Dickey Fr. Hyrum, Utah Mountain Crest Todd Gilbert Jr. Ogden, Utah Ogden Brett Hales So. Ogden, Utah Ogden Mike Hardy Fr. Mountain Green, Utah Morgan Parry Higginson So. South Weber, Utah Christian Heritage Bryant Jensen Sr. Farr West, Utah Fremont Bob Lambert Jr. West Jordan, Utah West Jordan Levin Lefevre So. Tropic, Utah Bryce Valley Jace Nye Jr. Kaysville, Utah Davis David Olson Sr. Colorado Springs, Colorado Lewis Palmer Trevor Ricks Fr. Alpine, Wyoming Star Valley Steve Shepherd Sr. Eden, Utah Weber Jacob Thornell Fr. Las Vegas, Nevada Bonanza Sean Wilde Fr. Cheyenne, Wyoming Central

5 2008 Weber State men s RESULTS Date of Meet: August 30, 2008 Distance: 6K Meet: Utah State Invitational - Wellsville, Utah - American Heritage Farm Course WsU Individual Finishers NAME YR TIME PLACE Bryant Jensen Sr. 19:33.7 1st Bob Lambert Jr. 19:42.6 2nd Mike Hardy Fr. 19:53.6 4th Parry Higginson So. 19:55.5 5th Chris Burnett RsFr. 20:10.1 8th Todd Gilbert Jr. 20: th Jace Nye Jr. 20: th top five team Finishes Name Points 1. Weber State Utah State 35 top five individual Finishes Name School Time 1. Bryant Jensen Weber State 19: Bob Lambert Weber State 19: Ben Kessen Utah State 19: Mike Hardy Weber State 19: Parry Higginson Weber State 19: Weber State WOmen s RESULTS Date of Meet: August 30, 2008 Distance: 5K Meet: Utah State Invitational - Wellsville, Utah - American Heritage Farm Course WsU Individual Finishers NAME YR TIME PLACE Natalie Haws Fr. 17:57.8 2nd Amy Cook Sr. 18:00.9 5th Cassie Olson Jr. 18:12.0 7th Katie Thompson Jr. 18:15.3 8th Laken Skidmore Fr. 18: th Loren Storey Fr. 19: th top five team Finishes Name Points 1. Utah State Weber State Utah 57 top five individual Finishes Name School Time 1. Chelsea Digrazia Utah State 17: Natalie Haws Weber State 17: Jessic Chugg Utah State 17: Caroline Berry Utah State 17: Amy Cook Weber State 18:00.9