2004 Cross-Country Wrap Up
Strong Finish Highlights Exciting Season

BILLINGS, MT – Distance runners work hard to peak at the right time of the season, and for the most part the Montana State-Billings cross-country teams accomplished that feat in 2004.  The Yellowjackets hosted the Pacific West Conference Championships in Billings for the first time in 2004, setting the standard for future PacWest cross-country championship meets.

Leading up to the conference championship meet, the Yellowjackets made their traditional four road trips.  They opened the season at the South Dakota Tech Invitational on September 11.  They followed with trips to Dickinson State, Black Hills State, and University of Colorado.  But the focal point of the season was the PacWest Championships.

The Lady Yellowjackets raced to a strong second place finish at the PacWest Championships, falling to BYU-Hawaii by just eight points.  The Seasiders were anchored by Chelsea Smith, who went on to capture her second straight individual national title. 

Behind Smith, the Yellowjackets took places two, three and five.  The entire team posted season-best times led by Senior Heidi Robertson (Great Falls, MT).  Robertson, a four-year letter winner in soccer, placed second in her one and only year of cross-country competition.  She covered the 5K course in 19:00, her fastest time of the season by a minute and a half.  She followed that performance with an 18:48 the following week at the Yellowjacket Invitational.

Junior Sara Lord (Billings, MT) was on Robertson’s heels, finishing third in 19:04.  It was also Lord’s first year competing for the Yellowjackets.  Senior Chelsea Lynnes (Miles City, MT) captured fifth place in 19:19.  Robertson, Lord and Lynnes each earned all-conference honors for their top ten finishes.

Tiffany Piplica (So., Riverton, WY) and Diana Davis (Jr., Kalispell, MT) rounded out the Yellowjackets' five scorers.  Piplica placed 14th in 20:04, almost two minutes faster than her best time this season.  Davis finished in 18th in 20:18, a personal best by over two minutes.

The Lady Yellowjackets had the largest number of runners in the race with ten.  Their second five included Mandy Brown (Sr., Wolf Point, MT) in 23rd place in 20:57, Tracie Overberg (Jr., Dodson, MT) in 27th place in 21:59, Kisa Kron (Fr., Livingston, MT) in 29th place in 22:09, Kristy Burns (So., Livingston, MT) in 32nd place in 22:36, and Kendra Bebee (Sr., Dillon, MT) in 35th place in 22:54.  All five ran personal bests for the year.

The Yellowjacket men also posted personal best times, but managed only a sixth place finish in the six team race.  They were led by Sam Hartpence's (So., Custer, SD) 17th place finish.  He ran a season-best 29:23 in the 8K, over a minute and a half better than his previous best this year.  Scott Brown (Sr., Billings, MT) was close behind Hartpence in 19th place in 28:35, also a season best.

Jared Rensvold (Fr., Wolf Point, MT) was the Jackets' third runner, placing 26th in 29:31 for his first sub-30 minute 8K of the year.  Ryan Archibald (Sr., Missoula, MT) placed 27th in 29:38, and Joe Kragt (So., Billings, MT) finished 29th in 29:59.  It was also the first time this season that Archibald and Kragt had run below 30 minutes for 8,000 meters.

MSU Billings followed the PacWest Championships the following week with their own Yellowjacket Invitational.  The Lady Yellowjackets finished second behind Black Hills State, while the men placed third.

Black Hills had three of the top five placers in the women’s race to edge the Lady Jackets.  Crystal Hostetter pulled away from MSUB’s Heidi Robertson for an eight-second win in 18:40.  Robertson held of teammate Sarah Lord for second place.  Robertson finished in 18:48, and Lord crossed the line in 18:49—both season-bests. 

The Jackets’ Chelsea Lynnes placed sixth in 19:30.  The Yellowjackets’ fourth and fifth runners were Diana Davis in eleventh and Tiffany Piplica in twelfth.  Davis finished in 20:14 followed by Piplica in 20:24.

Scott Brown was the top finisher for the MSU Billings men.  He ran a season-best 28:05 to place twelfth.  Sam Hartpence ran a steady 28:11, also a season-best, to place fourteenth.  Rounding out the Jackets’ top five were Joe Kragt in 20^th place in 29:39, Ryan Archibald in 22^nd in 29:55, and Jared Rensvold in 27^th in 30:46.

The PacWest Championships and the Yellowjacket Invitational set up the Yellowjackets for the NCAA West Regional held in Bellingham, WA.  The women’s team ran to a twelfth place finish.  The Yellowjacket men placed 17^th in the team competition.

Senior Heidi Robertson was the top finisher for the Yellowjackets placing 25^th overall in the 6-kilometer run with a time of 24:18.  Placing 26^th was teammate Sarah Lord also with a time of 24:18.  Chelsea Lynnes finished 55^th at 25:03. 

Scott Brown placed 105^th in the men’s 10-kilometer race with a time of 37:22 and was the top runner for the Yellowjacket men.  Teammate Sam Hartpence placed 108^th with a time of 37:38.

Both Yellowjacket teams will face the prospect of losing top runners to graduation.  The men will have to replace both Brown and Archibald on a team that ran with the minimum of five all season.  The women will have to fill the roles of Robertson, Lynnes and Brown.  But with the strong showings at the end of the season, Coach Dave Coppock’s charges could be ready to make a run at the conference championship race in 2005.