SALEM, Ore. -- While many of their more experienced runners traveled east to Pennsylvania for the Paul Short Run, the remaining George Fox cross country runners competed in their home state in the 50th Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational.

Top Performances
Starting with the Women's 5000m, freshman Ruby Snider was the first Bruin to cross the finish line with a solid PR time of 19:28.10. Then, Alexa Miller was next at 19:53.30, also a PR for the day, while Ellie Colquhoun followed close behind with 19:56.30 as her finishing time.

Morgan Thompson ran just over 20 minutes with her season's best at 20:02.20, and Emma Beachy was on her heels with a 20:03.90 time.

Junior Aubree Carr made a PR time of 20:16.20, and freshman Eva Halvorson came in just under 21 minutes with also a PR of 20:47.80.

For the Men's 8000m, sophomore Caleb Doddington made his season's best time of 26:23.94—the first of Fox to finish his race. Just over ten seconds later, Larry Trefry was next at 26:34.87, while Grant Headley trailed right behind him with a time of 26:35.42.

Isaac Davenport, Damien Sledd, Noah Westlund, and Jack Sclair all made it just under 27 minutes—Davenport (26:53.88), Sledd (26:54.11), Westlund (26:55.19), and Sclair (26:59.99). Each of the men finished the morning with PRs. Overall, several Bruins got their first taste of a collegiate experience as Fox worked on their depth for the future.

Coach's Thoughts
"It was a decent day for our group," Bruin head coach Mike Wilson said, "We had a lot of younger runners in scoring positions for the first time and, while our inexperience showed a bit, we handled the overall opportunity well."

What Happens Next
All of the Bruins will be back in action in Salem, Ore. to attend the George Oja Invitational in two weeks on Saturday, October 18. Race day is scheduled for 10:00 am.