Griz head to Mountain Regional meet looking to gain experience

Montana is sending 13 cross country student-athletes to the NCAA Mountain Region meet on Friday, with the women's race starting at 11 a.m. from Albuquerque, New Mexico, and the men following at noon.

The women will run a 6k race, while the men's course will be set at 10k. No Griz athlete has run at that respective distance this season, creating a unique challenge.

Also a challenge for Montana will be the competition Montana is up against.

Of the 30 men's teams nationally ranked in the latest USTFCCCA coaches' poll, six are from the Mountain Region, including two of the top three. On the women's side, the Mountain Region features six of the top 20 teams.

While no Grizzlies are expected to advance past Friday, instead the greater focus will be on experience for the underclassmen. Seven of the 13 Montana runners have eligibility remaining.

Just four of the 13 – all female runners – have competed at NCAA Regionals before, with Beatrix Frissell running twice previously – finishing as high as 57^th in 2019 – and Bridget Boyle and Jaylyn Hallgrimson competing in 2021. Annie Hill finished 36^th at the 2019 meet while competing for Colorado.

The full lineup of Griz runners includes: Nathan Carter, Will Dauenhauer, Rogelio Mares, Cooper Morris, Maxwell Scott and Brady Woods for the men; and Boyle, Frissell, Hallgrimson, Annie Hill, Kayla Ingraham, Iris McKean and Shay Pederson for the women.

Live results on Friday can be tracked online.

University of Montana Athletics

Griz head to Mountain Regional meet looking to gain experience

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