Pocatello, ID - After one of the strongest performances at the Big Sky Championships in recent memory, the Idaho State Bengals have one more opportunity to prove themselves against some of the best runners in the country at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships.
The XC runners are coming off of a strong finish at the Big Sky Championships, with the men finishing fifth and the women fourth as a team, the first for the former since 2018 and the latter since 2014.
The Mountain Region, ISU's other designated conference within D1 cross-country, is one of nine collegiate groupings determined by geographic location. As such, the Bengals will travel to Reno, NV, for the 20-team meet hosted by the hometown Wolfpack on Friday, November 15.
Despite consistent improvements throughout the season, neither the Bengal men or women have received attention in the USTFCCCA Mountain Region Top-15 Polls, and head coach Zach Kughn is excited for his runners to make a statement on a massive stage.
"We celebrated the Big Sky meet, but it's time to find the next goal and get after it," remarked Kughn. "(I asked them) are we going to be complacent with what we've done and coast through regionals or are we going to continue to set goals and chase them."
This will be the longest meet of the season for both teams thus far, as the regional races run 6 kilometers long for the women and 10K for the men.
Of the teams that make up the Mountain Region, Idaho State will see a handful of familiar faces at the championships, including Big Sky institutions Northern Arizona, Montana, Montana State, Northern Colorado, and Weber State.
Below is a list of the Mountain Region schools slated to compete alongside the Bengals in Reno.
Mountain Region Championships Roster
Air Force
BYU
Colorado
Colorado State
Idaho State
Montana
Montana State
Nevada
New Mexico
New Mexico State
Northern Arizona
Northern Colorado
Southern Utah
Texas Tech,
Utah
Utah State
Utah Valley
UTEP
Weber State
Wyoming
The Bengals' rosters for the meet are listed below.
Idaho State Men's Team - NCAA Mountain Regionals
Seth Babbel
Jacob DeTemple
Sunny Gunn
Jared Harden
Zac Pollock
Cade Smith
Brandon Walker
Idaho State Women's Team - NCAA Mountain Regionals
Saylor Erickson
Sulette Ferreyra Serna
Alivia Johnson
Gabby Johnson
Olivia Kendell
Allison Lemons
Cassandra Vasquez
THINGS TO KNOW
WHERE AND WHEN: Washoe Golf Course, Reno, NV // Friday, Nov. 15, 2024
WHAT TIME: 11:00 AM PT (Women's 6K) // 12:00 PM PT (Men's 10K)
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