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800

Probably the most surprising non-entrant in the entire meet this year is Thomas Staines. The defending champion has opted not to run the conference 800 this year in favor of anchoring CSU-Pueblo’s DMR squad. This opens the opportunity for someone else to snag a win in this event.

Behind Staines, nobody in the conference has broken 1:50. Western Colorado’s Juman Randall currently holds the #7 fastest time in the country with his 1:50.17. Behind him, Nathan Oglesby of Colorado Mesa and Kevin Thompson of Colorado Mines have run 1:51.73 and 1:52.55, respectively. Four men in the field have hit the provisional standard with two more knocking on the door. If this race gets taken out quick, there is definitely the possibility for a few more provisional standards to be hit.

Mile

Austin Anaya currently holds the #2 fastest time in the nation this season behind his teammate Elias Gedyon. Gedyon is not entered in the mile and will instead run the 1200 leg for Adams State’s DMR team. This leaves the field wide open for Anaya to take the title. His seed time of 4:00.97 is faster than number two seed Josh Evans of Colorado Mines (4:06.2) by nearly six seconds. Whether through altitude/track conversions or true times, eight men in this field have run the provisional mark or faster, and could have the potential to wreak havoc if the race turns tactical as many championship races tend to.

3000

Adams’ three-headed monster of Sydney Gidabuday, Elias Gedyon, and Austin Anaya headline the top of the men’s 3k field. Gidabuday and Gedyon have both broken eight minutes this year, while Anaya isn’t far behind with his 8:05.2. This field is very stacked, as everybody except for one person has run faster than the NCAA indoor provisional standard.

Charlie Sweeney and Taylor Stack of Western Colorado are legitimate threats to finish on the podium, while Josh Hoskinson of Mines and Kale Adams of Adams State also could score valuable points towards the team standings.

5000

Sydney Gidabuday is the only man entered in the field that has broken 14 minutes and currently holds the fastest time in the country by about six seconds. He is currently entered in both the 5k and the 3k and we will see if this plays into a slower more drawn out race in order to save his legs.

Taylor Stack, who is also entered in both races, is a potential dark horse and could knock-off Gidabuday if he has a good day. Dalton Graham of Adams State is the only other person in the field to have broken 14:10. He is also doubling. With the number of people in this field coming off of multiple races, I don’t expect a barn-burner. Rather, I expect a more tactically drawn out kickers race to ensue.

DMR

This might be the highlight distance race of the weekend. Indoor championship meets are great because we get to see individuals shed some of their individual monikers in order to participate in a great team battle. This Colorado DMR matchup looks like it could be entertaining and competitive.

Six of the 12 teams entered have achieved at least a national provisional mark. Of those six, five have slipped under the 10 minute barrier. Of those five, three - Western Colorado, Colorado Mines, and Adams State - currently occupy the top three positions in the national standings. The top five are only separated by about five seconds. With top names like Thomas Staines and Devundrick Walker abstaining from individual events to race the DMR, CSU-Pueblo could potentially usurp any of the teams currently in front of them. They have nothing to hold back for except this, which could make for an extremely exciting race!

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WOMEN

800

UC-Colorado Springs’ Skylyn Webb appears to be the top favorite. She currently holds the nation’s fastest time in the 800 with her altitude converted 2:03.87, which is nearly six seconds faster than the next fastest seed time. It will take a huge race for someone to knock off Webb.

Behind the top mark, the race for 2nd becomes wide open. The Western duo of Bailey Sharon (2:09.6) and Jessica Cusick (2:11.8) could potentially rack up valuable points for the Mountaineers in the team battle. CSU-Pueblo’s Yasmine Hernandez (2:12.95) also has a solid shot at the podium. Overall, the top eight women in the field have run 2:15 or faster this year.

Mile

Another race containing the national lead, Adams State’s Roisin Flanagan is also a heavy favorite. Her seed time of 4:39.34 leads her teammate Tiffany Christensen (4:49.15) by nearly 10 seconds. Behind the Adams pair, Kara Burton of Colorado Mines (4:55.38) and Erica Ruiz of MSU Denver (4:56.47) are the other two women in the conference to have broken five minutes so far this season. Despite these seed times, running a slow tactical race at altitude opens up the opportunity for a kicker to make up valuable places.

3000

The Flanagan pair of Roisin and Eilish currently hold the top seed times in the women’s 3k. Behind them, two more Grizzlies, Kaylee Bogina and Malena Grover, occupy the podium and the #4 place seeds. This race could potentially turn into a quality final.

11 women in the field have broken 10 minutes. Of the 11, only two come from a school not named Adams State. Chloe Cook of Colorado Mines and Kennedy Rufener of Western Colorado will face the ultimate home field disadvantage as they race against potentially nine Grizzlies. It will be interesting to see if Roisin attempts the double along with the mile. Its not like they need her to run. When literally half of the field comes from one school, something tells me that team running could have a big impact.

5000

The women’s 5k field contains less Grizzlies than the aforementioned 3k, but that doesn’t mean the field doesn’t contain quality firepower. Malena Grover and Kaylee Bogina from Adams State are both entered in the 5k in addition to the 3k. These two are also the only ones in the field to have seed times under 17 minutes.

Erica Ruiz of MSU Denver (17:18.05) looks like she could potentially be attempting the mile/5k double this weekend. Hannah Ellis (17:40.69), a freshman from UC-Colorado Springs, could also potentially score points in her first indoor conference meet.

DMR

The great thing about indoor season is seeing athletes shed off certain individual events for the sake of putting together a quality team effort. The distance medley is really the only opportunity for distance athletes to do this in a relay setting. The RMAC field currently contains four teams under 12 minutes. Only five seconds separate the first three teams.

CSU-Pueblo (11:37.93) currently holds the #5 fastest mark in the nation this year. UC-Colorado Springs and Adams State have run 11:41.65 and 11:42.45, respectively, this season. Yasmine Hernandez is slated to run the 800 as well as the third leg for the DMR for CSU-Pueblo.

Stephanie Cotter and Roisin Flanagan of Adams are also racing multiple events this weekend.