2014 NCAA DII West Regional Championships Men's Individual Results | Team2014 NCAA DII West Regional Championships Women's Results | Team BILLINGS, Mont. – On a chilly day at snow-touched Amend Park, Academy of Art University battled the best NCAA Division II has to offer in the West Regional Championships. Three individual performances warranted All-Region honors, led by junior
Valentin Pepiot's 15th place finish which made him the second ART U male to qualify for Nationals. Pacific West Conference Freshmen of the Year
Mack Marbas and
McKaela Christenson both turned in Top 20 results as well.
"On the men's side, it was everyone's first time running at Regionals and, on the women's side, only
Kaelyn Harbison had run it before," head coach
Torrey Olson said. "We weren't able to attack the plan we had set for ourselves, but that said, I'm very proud of how far the team has come this season to be in the conversation for making Nationals on both sides. We don't lose anyone next season and I'm really looking forward to the future."
Both Pepiot and Marbas ran paces just over five minutes per mile and wound up just four spots from one another across the finish line. Pepiot was the fourth highest junior at 31:32.3 in 15th overall and Marbas was the fourth highest freshman at 31:37.6 in 19th.
"I'm really proud of Mack and how he ran," Coach Olson said. "He didn't get out where he wanted to be, but as a freshman to have the composure he did and make moves was very significant. He put himself in a position to be an individual qualifier and was just a couple seconds short."
It turned out that the 13th – 15th place finishers were eligible for Nationals as they were the top three individuals not on a team who reached (top six teams qualify). The United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) would award All-Region honors to the top 25 individuals.
Like ART U's top two, the young men's contingent came up against the challenge of their first career 10k race. Sophomore
Austin Esposito came in 63rd overall at 32:47 and freshman
Brett Bermudez made a major push to pass about 25 competitors in the final two miles to take 94th at 33:40.4.
As a team, Academy of Art finished 11th of 23 with less than a two-minute game separating them from the final qualifying spot. The race itself was won by Henry Cheseto of Alaska Anchorage, but six Chico State runners in the top 10 gave the Wildcats the team title. ART U topped Cal State Monterey Bay, Humboldt State, Central Washington, and others in the competition.
Of the four Academy of Art women competing on Saturday morning, Christenson and sophomore
Kaelyn Harbison offered strong outings. Christenson went 22:04.8 for 19th place and Harbison followed in 30th with a time of 22:27.4. Christenson was the third highest finishing freshman and earned All-Region honors for a 5:54 mile pace that got her into the top 20.
"On women's side, I was particularly proud of McKaela and Kaelyn," Coach Olson said. "Both got out a difficult position to start, but they worked to move up and at one point were 17th and 18th in the race. They attempted to follow the plan that we had set for them."
Harbison, the only Urban Knight with previous Regional experience, made a 44-spot improvement on her placement as a freshman in 2013. In terms of time, she bettered her last 6k Regional by more than 1:21.
"Kaelyn went for it today and I'm proud of that effort," Coach Olson said. "She cut more than half off what she did last year and that shows a lot of progress. I'm excited for her to get back here next season."
Junior
Elizabeth Khuu crossed the finish line at 23:37.6 in 89th and freshman
Ericka Taylor took 112th with a 24:00.1 mark.
The top three individual qualifiers were from the PacWest Conference as California Baptist (Caroline Barkechir), Hawaii Pacific (Fiona McKenna), and Azusa Pacific (Staci Foster) will each send representatives to Nationals. Katelyn Steen of Western Washington won the race itself, but Simon Fraser captured the team title as the only squad with two individuals in the top nine.
"It was the first time we had a team at Regionals and we don't lose anyone from either squad in the coming season," Coach Olson said. "Overall it was a great experience for these athletes and they will have a lot to draw upon next year."
Pepiot will travel to Tom Sawyer Park in Louisville, Kentucky for a chance to become a NCAA All-American on Dec. 6.
