By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6110

SALEM, ORE. -- The 40th Annual Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational featured plenty of talented runners and highly-regarded teams on Saturday, Oct. 4 at Bush's Pasture Park. Among the top teams were those representing host Willamette University, which took second place in the Women's Cardinal 5-kilometer race and third place in the Men's Cardinal 8-kilometer race.

"They ran really, really well today," Willamette Head Coach Matt McGuirk said regarding the overall efforts of the Bearcats.

In the Women's Cardinal race, Chico State (Calif.) from NCAA Division II claimed the team title with a score of 45. Willamette finished close behind Chico State, taking second place with a score of 52. Third place went to Central Washington University at 87, while fourth place was earned by Whitworth University at 128. University of Puget Sound placed fifth at 164.

Ayla Granados, running unattached, won the individual championship in the Women's Cardinal race. She ahcieved a time of 17:37.8. Dani Eggleston from Central Washington was second in 17:55.1, and Olivia Mancl (So., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS) of Willamette was third at 17:57.8.

Gabi Jenkins of Nebraska Wesleyan University placed fourth in 18:01.9, just holding off a charge by Taylor Ostrander (Jr., Kenai, AK/Kenai Central HS) of Willamette, who took fifth in 18:02.1.

Led by Mancl and Ostrander, the Bearcats attained three of the top 10 places in the Women's Cardinal race. Michaela Freeby (Jr., Milwaukie, OR/Rex Putnam HS) of WU took seventh place in 18:09.6.

Also contributing to the Willamette women's team score were Hannah Bressler (Jr., Oak Harbor, WA/Oak Harbor HS) in 19th place (17th among scorers) at 18:33.2 and Alyssa Reese (Fr., Louisville, CO/Monarch HS) in 26th place (23rd among scorers) at 18:42.3.

The Men's Cardinal race was won by the University of Oregon, which recorded a nearly perfect team score of 16 (1-2-3-4-6). Chico State placed second with a score of 40, while Willamette was third at 131. Christopher Newport University (Va.) was fourth at 177, with Central Washington in fifth at 180.

John Gregorek, competing unattached, crossed the finish line first in the Men's Cardinal race in 23:54.0. He edged out Blake Henry, also running unattached, who was timed at 23.54.4. A third unattached runner, William Reyes, placed third in 23:54.9. Fourth place went to Cole Watson from the University of Oregon in 24:04.9. Tanguy Pepiot of Oregon was fifth at 24:21.6.

Alex McGuirk from Chico State was the top NCAA Division II runner in the race, as he took eighth place in 24:28.3. Yonny Castillo (Jr., Parkdale, OR/Hood River Valley HS) of Willamette was the first NCAA Division III athlete to cross the finish line. He took 19th place in 25:05.0.

Castillo was one of three Bearcats in the top 25 of the Men's Cardinal race. Daniel Swanson (Sr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS) placed 22nd in 25:18.7, while Jacob Shafi (Jr., Pleasanton, CA/Amador Valley HS) was 23rd at 25:20.8. Castillo, Swanson and Shafi placed 14th, 15th and 16th among scorers.

Forrest Smith (Fr., Crested Butte, CO/Crested Butte HS) of Willamette was 56th overall in 26:24.8. Teammate Dane Tippett (Fr., Mountain View, CA/Los Altos HS) placed 58th in 26:25.6. Smith was 42nd and Tippett was 44th among scorers, helping the Bearcats earn their team score.

The Men's Gold 8-kilometer race, featuring NAIA, junior college, and club teams, plus unattached runners, was won by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Fla.) with a score of 61. University of British Columbia was second at 69, with Lewis-Clark State College (Idaho) in third at 71. Eastern Oregon University placed fourth at 89, while the University of Oregon Running Club took fifth at 161.

Matthew Clowes from Concordia University (Ore.) earned the Men's Gold individual championship with a time of 23:56.2. Cody Larson from Lewis-Clark State was second at 24:42.1, as he edged out third place finisher Alec Hernandez form Embry-Riddle, who achieved a time of 24:42.7.

Brady Beagley, running unattached, was fourth in the Men's Gold race in 24:47.0, while Robert McLaughlan, also unattached, took fifth in 24:56.1.

In the Women's Golf 5-kilometer race, British Columbia claimed the team title at 47. Northwest Christian University (Ore.) placed second at 63, and Lewis-Clark State was third at 70. Oregon Institute of Technology took fourth place at 137 and Concordia was fifth at 176.

Former Willamette and Oregon runner Kimber Mattox ('11) won the Women's Gold individual title in 16:57.2. Mattox was followed by Maria Bernard from British Columbia, who earned second place in 17:18.7.

Mia Elbon, competing unattached, claimed third place in 17:43.2. Renee Gordon from the U of O Running Club placed fourth in the Women's Gold race at 17:45.3. Amelie de Fenoyl from British Columbia was fifth in 17:52.1.

A total of 151 runners competed in the Men's Cardinal 8-kilometer race, while 179 runners participated in the Women's Cardinal 5-kilometer race. The Men's Gold 8-kilometer race included 162 runners. The Women's Golf 5-kilometer race featured 160 runners.

Willamette's next competition will be at two meets on Saturday, Oct. 18. The Bearcats will send part of each team to the Brooks Invitational in Winneconne, Wis., and will send additional runners to the Lewis & Clark Invitational.

The Brooks Invitational will begin at 10:30 a.m. (CDT)/8:30 a.m. (PDT). The L&C Invitational is set to start at 11 a.m. (PDT) at McIver State Park in Estacada, Ore.