Friday, September 20
Missoula, Mont.
6:00 PM
Montana
vs
UM Invite
Photo by: Ella Palulis/University of Montana
Griz handle business, win twice on home course
9/20/2024 9:56:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country
The Montana Grizzlies took care of business at their home cross country meet on Friday evening by winning both the men's and women's team competitions. Abigail Case was the overall winner on the women's side as the Griz placed six runners inside the top nine.
Henry Ballinger was the top finisher for the men as they had three runners inside the top 10. The runners had great weather in Missoula to run in the only home meet of the year, which also signifies the midpoint of the season.
"It's great to have a race at home. The kids get a full week of school and no travel," head coach Doug Fraley said. "I thought they responded really well to it. Our expectation was to come in and win both the men and the women today and the kids were able to deliver on that. Beautiful day at the UM Golf Course and I'm happy for our kids to come away with the win today."
The women had a team score of 21 as they dominated the race, averaging over 40 seconds faster than the closest competition and winning by 56 points. Case crossed the line first, kicking to the finish to overcome an opposing runner and win the title for Montana.
She started the race at the back of the lead group and strategized her way through it. She made it through the very difficult hill that comes near the midpoint of the race with the lead group, and once she entered the final stretch kicked it home. She won with a time of 19:12.0.
"My goal was to stay within closing distance of the front group and see if I could kick it into gear on the last downhill mile," Case said. "I moved up a little bit and the girl in front of me wasn't too far, so I just thought I'd go for it to try to see if we could get a Montana win on this course. It felt like I couldn't let someone who's not from Montana win on this course."
She was the first of two Grizzly newcomers in the finishing order as Abigail Kotran ended up in third place with a time of 19:26.1. Iris McKean led the Grizzlies out of the gates and had the lead after the first mile, and finished strong to take fourth place overall in a time of 19:27.1.
The Grizzlies filled up nearly the entire top 10 as Shay Pederson and Sofia Hinderman finished in sixth and seventh, respectively. Heidi Olson also cracked the top 10 with a ninth place finish while Olivia Coll finished just outside in 11th.
Montana had nine women finish the race and six of them were running the course for the first time as Grizzlies. The signature hill that brings runners up and over the third tee box at the UM Golf Course has frustrated runners for years, and it was no different on Friday.
"That hill is something else. It's just three tiers that get harder and harder, I swear I was almost power walking that last stretch," Case joked. "But no, it was a good one. I think it really brings the whole sport of cross country together. It's a fun course, you don't get this in track or on some other courses. The views are amazing, you can see all the mountains and the weather was great. It was just a good overall day."
Ballinger led the men for the third time in as many races with a sixth-place finish overall in a time of 25:53. He ran with Carson Steckelberg for a majority of the race, and just like the previous two the sophomore from Bozeman finished second on the Grizzly team with a time of 25:58.1.
Freshman Lane Krautschun also finished in the top 10 with a time of 26:01.6. The Grizzlies had several other strong finishes in Keagen Crosby (16th), Luke Mest (19th), and Zachary Giesch (22nd).
There were several men running the home course for the first time, and the Grizzlies also strategized early to run as a team to try to get the most out of everyone on the roster, a strategic decision from assistant coach AJ Eckmann. Ballinger stuck with the pack for the opening stretches of the race, but showed his speed to finish.
"We love the home course, I think it's unanimously one of the favorite courses on the team," Ballinger said. "We were trying to get as many guys to a top time as we could, so we had all of us stick together the first three miles and then let it loose a little bit which was fun. I wasn't supposed to throw in that kick at the end, but we were in the race and AJ said I could go get a few guys, so I decided to let the track legs speak."
Gallery: (9-20-2024) XC: Montana Invitational (9.20.24)
The race served as the midway point of the season for Montana and the young Grizzlies are now entering the back half with just two races remaining. The wins for both the men and women, and the individual highlights, should give them momentum for the closing stretch.
Ballinger and Case have proven to be leaders on the team as both have finished as the top Grizzly in every race they have participated in.
"Abbie did a great job working her way through and winning that race. It's always great when you can win a collegiate cross country race and she did a good job," Fraley said. "Henry has led us every race so far this year and did an excellent job of pulling his teammates along through the middle of that race when they were running in a pack and then showed his real good track speed at the end. They did a good job of leading us today."
After incredibly difficult fields in the first two events of the season, Montana wanted to take the opportunity at their home course to run as a team and bring everyone together. The strategy paid off and led to two team wins.
"I thought AJ (Eckmann) did a good job of strategizing specifically for this race running the teams in groups through certain points of the race and then letting them break free with what they had toward the end of the race," Fraley said. "I think that really helped us run well together and work together with both the men's and the women's groups."
Montana will have one week off before competing in Billings on Oct. 4 at the Yellowjacket/Battlin' Bears Open.
MONTANA WOMEN'S RESULTS
1. Abigail Case (19:12.0)
3. Abigail Kotran (19:26.1)
4. Iris McKean (19:27.1)
6. Shay Pederson (19:32.7)
7. Sofia Hinderman (19:39.5)
9. Heidi Olson (19:44.0)
11. Olivia Coll (19:53.8)
15. Libby Hartz (20:02.8)
26. Ashtyn Wagner (20:47.7)
MONTANA MEN'S RESULTS
6. Henry Ballinger (25:53.6)
8. Carson Steckelberg (25:58.1)
10. Lane Krautschun (26:01.6)
16. Keagen Crosby (26:18.1)
19. Luke Mest (26:25.4)
22. Zachary Giesch (26:45.2)
38. Morgan Amano (27:41.9)
43. Truman Thompson (28:12.8)
WOMEN'S TEAM SCORES
1. Montana – 21
2. Carroll College – 77
3. Rocky Mountain – 85
4. Montana Tech – 91
5. Montana Western – 138
6. Dawson CC – 148
MEN'S TEAM SCORES
1. Montana – 32
2. Carroll College – 55
3. Rocky Mountain – 66
4. Montana Tech – 82
5. Montana Western - 147
Henry Ballinger was the top finisher for the men as they had three runners inside the top 10. The runners had great weather in Missoula to run in the only home meet of the year, which also signifies the midpoint of the season.
"It's great to have a race at home. The kids get a full week of school and no travel," head coach Doug Fraley said. "I thought they responded really well to it. Our expectation was to come in and win both the men and the women today and the kids were able to deliver on that. Beautiful day at the UM Golf Course and I'm happy for our kids to come away with the win today."
The women had a team score of 21 as they dominated the race, averaging over 40 seconds faster than the closest competition and winning by 56 points. Case crossed the line first, kicking to the finish to overcome an opposing runner and win the title for Montana.
She started the race at the back of the lead group and strategized her way through it. She made it through the very difficult hill that comes near the midpoint of the race with the lead group, and once she entered the final stretch kicked it home. She won with a time of 19:12.0.
"My goal was to stay within closing distance of the front group and see if I could kick it into gear on the last downhill mile," Case said. "I moved up a little bit and the girl in front of me wasn't too far, so I just thought I'd go for it to try to see if we could get a Montana win on this course. It felt like I couldn't let someone who's not from Montana win on this course."
Abigail Case is the winner of the UM Invitational! #GrizXC | #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/jwPYsXjUfx
— Montana Griz TF & XC (@MontanaGrizTFXC) September 21, 2024
She was the first of two Grizzly newcomers in the finishing order as Abigail Kotran ended up in third place with a time of 19:26.1. Iris McKean led the Grizzlies out of the gates and had the lead after the first mile, and finished strong to take fourth place overall in a time of 19:27.1.
The Grizzlies filled up nearly the entire top 10 as Shay Pederson and Sofia Hinderman finished in sixth and seventh, respectively. Heidi Olson also cracked the top 10 with a ninth place finish while Olivia Coll finished just outside in 11th.
Montana had nine women finish the race and six of them were running the course for the first time as Grizzlies. The signature hill that brings runners up and over the third tee box at the UM Golf Course has frustrated runners for years, and it was no different on Friday.
"That hill is something else. It's just three tiers that get harder and harder, I swear I was almost power walking that last stretch," Case joked. "But no, it was a good one. I think it really brings the whole sport of cross country together. It's a fun course, you don't get this in track or on some other courses. The views are amazing, you can see all the mountains and the weather was great. It was just a good overall day."
Ballinger led the men for the third time in as many races with a sixth-place finish overall in a time of 25:53. He ran with Carson Steckelberg for a majority of the race, and just like the previous two the sophomore from Bozeman finished second on the Grizzly team with a time of 25:58.1.
Freshman Lane Krautschun also finished in the top 10 with a time of 26:01.6. The Grizzlies had several other strong finishes in Keagen Crosby (16th), Luke Mest (19th), and Zachary Giesch (22nd).
There were several men running the home course for the first time, and the Grizzlies also strategized early to run as a team to try to get the most out of everyone on the roster, a strategic decision from assistant coach AJ Eckmann. Ballinger stuck with the pack for the opening stretches of the race, but showed his speed to finish.
"We love the home course, I think it's unanimously one of the favorite courses on the team," Ballinger said. "We were trying to get as many guys to a top time as we could, so we had all of us stick together the first three miles and then let it loose a little bit which was fun. I wasn't supposed to throw in that kick at the end, but we were in the race and AJ said I could go get a few guys, so I decided to let the track legs speak."
The race served as the midway point of the season for Montana and the young Grizzlies are now entering the back half with just two races remaining. The wins for both the men and women, and the individual highlights, should give them momentum for the closing stretch.
Ballinger and Case have proven to be leaders on the team as both have finished as the top Grizzly in every race they have participated in.
"Abbie did a great job working her way through and winning that race. It's always great when you can win a collegiate cross country race and she did a good job," Fraley said. "Henry has led us every race so far this year and did an excellent job of pulling his teammates along through the middle of that race when they were running in a pack and then showed his real good track speed at the end. They did a good job of leading us today."
After incredibly difficult fields in the first two events of the season, Montana wanted to take the opportunity at their home course to run as a team and bring everyone together. The strategy paid off and led to two team wins.
"I thought AJ (Eckmann) did a good job of strategizing specifically for this race running the teams in groups through certain points of the race and then letting them break free with what they had toward the end of the race," Fraley said. "I think that really helped us run well together and work together with both the men's and the women's groups."
Montana will have one week off before competing in Billings on Oct. 4 at the Yellowjacket/Battlin' Bears Open.
It's very hard to beat these views 😍🖼️ pic.twitter.com/z2L988LcvI
— Montana Griz TF & XC (@MontanaGrizTFXC) September 21, 2024
MONTANA WOMEN'S RESULTS
1. Abigail Case (19:12.0)
3. Abigail Kotran (19:26.1)
4. Iris McKean (19:27.1)
6. Shay Pederson (19:32.7)
7. Sofia Hinderman (19:39.5)
9. Heidi Olson (19:44.0)
11. Olivia Coll (19:53.8)
15. Libby Hartz (20:02.8)
26. Ashtyn Wagner (20:47.7)
MONTANA MEN'S RESULTS
6. Henry Ballinger (25:53.6)
8. Carson Steckelberg (25:58.1)
10. Lane Krautschun (26:01.6)
16. Keagen Crosby (26:18.1)
19. Luke Mest (26:25.4)
22. Zachary Giesch (26:45.2)
38. Morgan Amano (27:41.9)
43. Truman Thompson (28:12.8)
WOMEN'S TEAM SCORES
1. Montana – 21
2. Carroll College – 77
3. Rocky Mountain – 85
4. Montana Tech – 91
5. Montana Western – 138
6. Dawson CC – 148
MEN'S TEAM SCORES
1. Montana – 32
2. Carroll College – 55
3. Rocky Mountain – 66
4. Montana Tech – 82
5. Montana Western - 147
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
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