NWC CHAMPIONSHIPS: Bruin Men 8th, Women 9th in Conference Races

NWC Championship Results (M) / NWC Championship Results (W)

WALLA WALLA, Wash. - With 242 points, the George Fox University men placed eighth, while the Bruin women came in ninth but had no points due to having only four runners entered in the Northwest Conference Cross Country Championships hosted by Whitman College Saturday here at the Veterans Memorial Golf Course.

Whitworth University won the men’s 8K title with 43 points, ending Willamette University’s seven-year rule.  Willamette was second with 51, followed by Lewis & Clark College with 71, Linfield College with 104, the University of Puget Sound with 149, Whitman with 153, Pacific Lutheran University with 189, George Fox, and then Pacific University with 245.  Francis Reynolds of UPS took the individual title, well ahead of Nicholas Gallagher of Whitworth, with a time of 24:35.24 to 25:26.74.

Higgins ran a 27:35.15 to place 46th overall and 40th for team scoring.  Others counting for the Bruins were Jordan Ware with a 27:57.09 (50th/44th), Jacob Cuniff with a 28:24.88 (57th/49th), Allen Cassel with a 29:11.58 (65th/54th), and Wesley Bollinger with a 29:24.75 (66th/55th).  Also competing for George Fox was Ryan Lane with a 29:31.45 (67th).  Cam Eberhart did not finish the race.

In the women’s 6K race, Willamette won its seventh consecutive NWC crown with 42 points, while Whitman and Whitworth tied for second with 77 points.  Following them were Lewis & Clark with 100, Linfield with 131, Puget Sound with 142, Pacific with 170, and Pacific Lutheran with 202.  George Fox was one runner short, as five are needed for a team score.  Maddie Coffman of Willamette edged teammate Jena Winger for the individual title 21:31.27 to 21:36.93.

Reed paced the Bruins with a time of 23:37.57, finishing 27th overall.  Mary VanSteenberghe ran a 24:21.85 to place 48th, Bethany Strutz was 62nd with a 25:28.47, and Olivia Clark was 74th with a 27:09.97.

Next up for all the NWC runners is the NCAA Division III West Regionals on Saturday, Nov. 15, hosted by Willamette University at Bush’s Pasture Park in Salem, Ore.