2018 #RMACxc Preseason Awards Announced
FULL RELEASE
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (August 20, 2018) – The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) announced the 2018 RMAC Cross Country Preseason Awards.
The awards were voted on by the conference's 16 head coaches. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own student-athletes.
WOMENS PRESEASON COACHES POLL
In the women’s coaches poll, Adams State was selected by 11 coaches as the favorite for the 2018 season for a total of 220 points. The Grizzlies, who won last year’s NCAA Division II title, have five runners on the 2018 RMAC Preseason Cross Country Team. Western State nabbed five first place votes to get 208 points. Colorado School of Mines, UCCS and CSU-Pueblo finished in third, fourth and fifth, respectively, as they all try to reach the NCAA Championships for the second straight year.
Preseason Coaches Poll (first-place votes)
Adams State (11) – 220
Western State (5) – 208
Colorado School of Mines – 197
UCCS – 184
CSU-Pueblo – 156
Fort Lewis – 137
Black Hills State – 129
Colorado Christian – 129
Chadron State – 109
Colorado Mesa – 106
MSU-Denver – 104
South Dakota School of Mines – 75
Regis – 53
New Mexico Highlands – 49
Dixie State – 43
Westminster – 21
MENS PRESEASON COACHES POLL
In the men’s coaches poll, Colorado School of Mines edged Adams State for the top spot in the poll despite both teams finishing with eight first-place votes. The Grizzlies, who won the NCAA Division II championship in 2017 finished one point behind the Orediggers, 218-217. Colorado School of Mines won the RMAC Championship last season. Western State finished with 195 points, CSU-Pueblo finished with 185 points and UCCS finished with 160 points to round out the top five.
Preseason Coaches Poll (first-place votes)
Colorado School of Mines (8) – 218
Adams State (8) – 217
Western State 195
CSU-Pueblo – 185
UCCS – 160
Black Hills State – 149
Colorado Mesa – 136
MSU-Denver – 114
Fort Lewis – 113
Chadron State – 108
Colorado Christian – 80
New Mexico Highlands – 71
South Dakota School of Mines – 62
Regis – 43
Dixie State – 39
Westminster – 30
WOMENS PRESEASON RUNNER OF THE YEAR/ALL-RMAC
Alicja Konieczek, a senior for Western State, was named the RMAC Preseason Runner of the Year for the second straight year. 10 of the 14 women landed on the First or Second Team All-RMAC in the 2017 season.
Konieczek, a senior who did not compete in 2017, is a two-time cross country All-American, placed third in the 6K at the 2016 RMAC Championship with a time of 22:39.01. She placed second at the NCAA Division II (DII) South Central Region Cross Country Championship with a time of 21:46.5. The Zbaszyn, Poland native helped Western take third at the 2016 NCAA DII Cross Country Championship with a 10th place finish and a time of 20:45.1. She was named First Team All-RMAC and All-Academic.
PRESEASON All-RMAC WOMEN’S TEAM
Cassidy Ahrens – Western State
Sadie Baker – Adams State
Kaylee Bogina – Adams State
Chloe Cook – Colorado School of Mines
Brook Eberle – Colorado School of Mines
Eilish Flanagan – Adams State
Roisin Flanagan – Adams State
Haleigh Hunter-Galvan – Adams State
Alicja Konieczek – Western State
Aneta Konieczek – Western State
Michaela Reynolds – Colorado School of Mines
Sophie Seward – Western State
Megan Wenham – Colorado School of Mines
Kayla Wooten – UCCS
MENS PRESEASON RUNNER OF THE YEAR/ALL-RMAC
Grant Colligan, a redshirt senior for Colorado School of Mines was named the RMAC Preseason Runner of the Year. 11 of the 14 men landed on the First or Second Team All-RMAC in the 2017 season.
Colligan was named the 2017 RMAC Runner of the Year and earned a USTFCCCA All-American after he finished 5th at NCAA Championships, the highest finisher ever by an Oredigger. He won the RMAC Individual title with a time of 24:59. He was named USTFCCCA National Athlete of the Week (Oct. 23) as he recorded five top-10 individual finishes over the course of the season.
Academiclly he was named USTFCCCA All-Academic, RMAC Academic Runner of the Year and RMAC First-Team All-Academic.
PRESEASON All-RMAC MEN’S TEAM
Kale Adams – Adams State
Grant Colligan – Colorado School of Mines
Alec Chouy – CSU-Pueblo
Elias Gedyon – Adams State
Sydney Gidabuday – Adams State
Ross Husch – Western State
Josh Hoskinson – Colorado School of Mines
Ahmed Jama – Western State
Joshua Joseph – Adams State
Marcelo Laguera – CSU-Pueblo
Richard Ocampo – Colorado School of Mines
Logan Ramlet – Colorado School of Mines
Ben Schneiderman – Colorado School of Mines
Derrick Williams – CSU-Pueblo
Click here to view the
2018 RMAC Cross Country Composite Schedule.