RESULTS

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Seeking respect after being relegated to the bottom of the Big Sky Conference in the preseason coaches poll, the Portland State cross country program earned it Saturday as the Viking women and men recorded two of their best finishes ever at the Big Sky Championships while placing fifth and eighth, respectively, at the Haggin Oaks Golf Complex.
 
The Viking women's fifth-place finish came after they were picked to finish tied for ninth in the Big Sky during the preseason, while the men placed eighth after being picked to finish dead last. The fifth-place finish for the Viking women marked the best finish ever for the team, relative to the size of the Big Sky Conference, while the Viking men's eighth-place finish came as their second-best team finish ever.
 
The Viking women's team had placed fifth twice before at the Big Sky meet, but both of those times came when the Big Sky Conference had nine teams or less. A fifth-place finish out of 11 teams, then, marked the Vikings' best placement within the conference, and came as the Vikings set multiple historical performances, both individually and as a team.
 
Seniors Kaila Gibson and Sarah Medved led the Vikings with ninth- and 10th-place finishes individually in the women's 5k, making them the first pair of Viking teammates to place in the top 10 and earn All-Big Sky honors in the same season. Medved also became just the second runner in program history to be a two-time All-Big Sky honoree in cross country, after she also placed 10th at the Big Sky meet in 2016. Medved joins Melissa Telford as a two-time all-conference honoree, after Telford earned the honor in back-to-back years in 1998 and 1999.
 
Gibson placed ninth while finishing in a new personal-best time of 16:58.7 Saturday, crushing her old best in the 5k by just under 27 seconds. Gibson became just the second Viking to ever dip under 17 minutes in the cross country 5k, after Julie Pedersen finished in 16:41.77 at the 2010 Big Sky Championships. Gibson moved up to second all time in the cross country 5k at Portland State as a result, while Medved jumped five spots to third all time while finishing right behind Gibson in 17:01.2. That marked a big jump for Medved in the 5k, as she beat her personal best at the distance by close to 34 seconds. 
 
Gibson and Medved now rank in the top five with each other in the cross country 4k (Gibson 1st, Medved 3rd), 5k (Gibson 2nd, Medved 3rd) and 6k (Medved 2nd, Gibson 4th). All of those times have come this season, when the pair of teammates and training partners have accumulated seven top-10 finishes between them (Gibson four, Medved three).
 
Gibson and Medved weren't alone at the Big Sky meet, however, as the team's young runners backed them up with their own strong performances. The Vikings' entire top seven placed among the top 50 runners, the first time the Vikings have done that since 2004. That tight bunching helped the Vikings tie their best point total ever at the Big Sky meet with 128 points, with the other 128-point total also coming in 2004. The Big Sky Conference only had eight teams in 2004, however, while this year's team competed in a bigger, 82-runner field.
 
Freshman Hunter Storm placed as the Viking women's third runner at the meet, as she finished 28th overall in 17:31.5. Storm's 28th-place finish marked the highest finish by a first-year Viking runner since Chelsie Jorgensen placed 25th in 2007. Additionally, Storm's time of 17:31.5 marked a personal best for the Viking freshman by 6.5 seconds, beating the time of 17:38.0 she set at the Charles Bowles Invitational on Sept. 29.
 
Fellow freshman Linnaea Kavulich set an even bigger personal best while finishing as the Vikings' fourth runner at 39th overall in 17:46.8. Kavulich beat her old best in the 5k by close to 34 seconds, after she finished in 18:20.6 at the Charles Bowles Invitational. Kavulich's fourth-place finish in the Vikings' lineup also marked her highest finish within the team since she placed fourth at the season-opening Viking 'Rust-Buster' on Sept. 1.
 
Freshman Phoebe Jacques also dipped under 18 minutes for the first time in the 5k, as she closed out the Vikings' top five while placing 42nd overall in 17:55.4. Jacques' previous best in the 5k came at the Charles Bowles Invitational, where she finished in 18:23.0, but beat that time by just under 28 seconds Saturday.
 
Sophomore newcomer Delaney White shaved 19 seconds off her PSU personal best in the 5k while finishing one spot behind Jacques at 43rd overall in 18:00.2.
 
Freshman Sammy Burke knocked two seconds off her personal best in the 5k while closing out the Vikings' top seven with a 48th-place finish in 18:04.7.
 
Sophomore McKenna Martin, meanwhile, showed dramatic improvement over her finish at last season's Big Sky Championships, where she placed 88th overall. Martin moved up 18 places while finishing 70th overall, and posted a time of 19:11.1 – her second-best 5k time in her Portland State career.
 
The Portland State men's team opened the day with a statement that they'll be a team to take seriously over the next couple of years. With two freshmen and a redshirt sophomore making up their top three, the Viking men placed eighth out of 11 teams – the men's team's second-best finish ever at the Big Sky meet, relative to the size of the conference. The Viking men's best finish ever came in 2016, when they placed eighth out of a 12-team Big Sky Conference.
 
Freshmen Max Norman and Drew Seidel led the way, as they placed 31st and 32nd overall, respectively, in the men's 8k – the first time the Viking men have had two freshmen place in the top 35 of the Big Sky meet since 2002. Norman's 31st-place finish also marked the best finish by a Viking freshman in the men's race since multiple-school-record-holder Alex Cisneros placed 27th as a freshman in 2014. Norman's time of 24:57.55 beat Cisneros' time of 25:30.5 when they were both freshmen, however, giving Norman the best time by a Viking freshman since Zach Carpenter finished in 23:45.39 in 2010.
 
Norman made his Viking debut only two weeks before the Big Sky meet at the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational on Oct. 13. Norman finished second to Seidel at that meet, as Seidel had led the Viking men at every meet at which he competed until Saturday.
 
Seidel finished right behind Norman in 24:59.85, his third straight time dipping under 25 minutes in the 8k.
 
Andrew Stafford followed Norman and Seidel at 52nd overall in 25:27.6, just seven seconds off the personal best he set on a fast course at the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational two weeks ago.
 
Junior Jason Rae placed two spots and less than a second behind Stafford at 54th overall in 25:28.2. Rae, who began the season finishing as the Vikings' 10th runner at the Viking 'Rust-Buster', has now finished in the Vikings' top five at his past four meets.
 
Freshman Luke Ramirez rounded out the Vikings' top five, as he placed 65th overall in 25:51.8. Ramirez missed setting a personal best at the meet by just over a second, as he nearly beat the time of 25:50.5 he set at the Charles Bowles Invitational on Sept. 29.
 
Fellow freshman Ian Vickstrom crossed the line two spots behind Ramirez at 67th overall in 26:00.4, giving him a three-second personal best over his time of 26:03.1 two weeks ago at the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational.
 
Sophomores Andy Solano and Jayson Maule closed out the Vikings' contingent at the race, finishing 68th and 73rd overall, respectively, in times of 26:04.3 and 26:10.5.
 
The Vikings will return to the Haggin Oaks Golf Complex for their next race, as they compete at the NCAA West Regional on Nov. 9. The women will run a 6k at the meet, while the men up their distance to a 10k. Start times for both races are still to be determined.
 
Big Sky Championships
Haggin Oaks Golf Complex
Sacramento, Calif.
Oct. 27, 2018
 
Women's Top Ten Finishers (5k):
1. Angie Nickerson, Southern Utah, 16:30.3; 2. Kelsi Lasota, Montana State, 16:42.2; 3. Kara Story, Idaho, 16:44.9; 4. Maddy Kaufman, Southern Utah, 16:47.0; 5. Madison Fruchey, Southern Utah, 16:48.0; 6. Alison Pray, Southern Utah, 16:51.2; 7. Jesselyn Bries, Northern Arizona, 16:52.0; 8. Andrea Condie, Idaho, 16:57.0; 9. Kaila Gibson, Portland State, 16:58.7; 10. Sarah Medved, Portland State, 17:01.2. 
 
Women's Team Scores:
1. Southern Utah, 28 points; 2. Northern Arizona, 65 points; 3. Weber State, 92 points; 4. Idaho, 117 points; 5. Portland State, 128 points; 6. Montana State, 138 points; 7. Sacramento State, 193 points; 8. Idaho State, 205 points; 9. Montana, 216 points; 10. Northern Colorado, 255 points; 11. Eastern Washington, 354 points.
 
Portland State Runners (out of 82):
9. Kaila Gibson, 16:58.7; 10. Sarah Medved, 17:01.2; 28. Hunter Storm, 17:31.5; 39. Linnaea Kavulich, 17:46.8; 42. Phoebe Jacques, 17:55.4; 43. Delaney White, 18:00.2; 48. Sammy Burke, 18:04.7; 70. McKenna Martin, 19:11.1.
 
Men's Top Ten Finishers (8k):
1. Matthew Baxter, Northern Arizona, 22:46.0; 2. Tyler Day, Northern Arizona, 22:50.5; 3. Blaise Ferro, Northern Arizona, 23:06.6; 4. Geordie Beamish, Northern Arizona, 23:29.2; 5. Christian Ricketts, Southern Utah, 23:43.5; 6. Aidan Reed, Southern Utah, 23:44.3; 7. Wyatt Diderickson, Idaho State, 23:48.0; 8. Christian Allen, Weber State, 24:00.0; 9. Nate Osterstock, Southern Utah, 24:04.2; 10. Tyson Green, Weber State, 24:05.8.
 
Men's Team Scores:
1. Northern Arizona, 21 points; 2. Weber State, 70 points; 3. Southern Utah, 76 points; 4. Montana State, 100 points; 5. Idaho State, 117 points; 6. Idaho, 187 points; 7. Sacramento State, 196 points; 8. Portland State, 227 points; 9. Northern Colorado, 239 points; 10. Montana, 259 points; 11. Eastern Washington, 288 points.
 
Portland State Runners (out of 82):
31. Max Norman, 24:57.6; 32. Drew Seidel, 24:59.9; 52. Andrew Stafford, 25:27.6; 54. Jason Rae, 25:28.2; 65. Luke Ramirez, 25:51.8; 67. Ian Vickstrom, 26:00.4; 68. Andy Solano, 26:04.3; 73. Jayson Maule, 26:10.5.