By Eric Spresser, Student Assistant Athletics Communications Director

SALEM, ORE. -- The Willamette University men's cross country team finished yet another strong season by placing 28th in the nation at the 2015 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships.

Leading up to the NCAA Championships, the Bearcats continued their dominance of the Northwest Conference, as they won their fourth straight NWC team title on Oct. 31 at the NWC Championships, hosted by Pacific Lutheran University. It was Willamette 12th team title since 2001 and was the Bearcats' 23rd title overall.

Additionally, Willamette Head Coach Matt McGuirk was named NWC Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year for the fourth straight season. He has now received the award 11 times since 2001.

Helping the Bearcats win the NWC Championship were Nathan Conrad (Sr., Bothell, WA/Bothell HS), who finished third, Yonny Castillo (Sr., Parkdale, OR/Hood River Valley HS) in fifth, Jacob Shafi (Sr., Pleasonton, CA/Amador Valley HS) in sixth, and Patrick Loftus (So., Healdsburg, CA/Sonoma Academy) in seventh. All four runners received First Team All-NWC accolades.

Also contributing for the Bearcats and earning Second Team All-NWC recognition was Keith Carlson (Fr., Bainbridge Island, WA/Bainbridge HS) after crossing the finish line in 10th place.

Following their NWC triumph, the Bearcats competed at the 2015 NCAA West Regional, where the they took home a third place finish. The West Regional was held on Nov. 14 on the campus of Pomona-Pitzer (Calif.).

Conrad again led the way for WU, finishing in sixth place, followed by Castillo in 14th, Loftus in 21st, and Shafi in 30th. All four received All-West Regional honors. Hunter Matthies (Sr., Moran, WY/Jackson Hole HS) also contributed to Willamette's team score, finishing in 39th place.

With their third place finish in the West Regional, the Bearcats were chosen to receive a team at-large bid to compete at the 2015 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships. It was the first team bid for the Willamette men since 2010, although the Bearcat men were represented by at least one runner at the NCAA Championships from 2011-14.

The Bearcats started the season unranked in the national poll before slowly climbing their way up to #21 on Nov. 4. Willamette was ranked #29 following the West Regional. The NCAA Championships were held at Lake Breeze Golf Course in Winneconne, Wisconsin, on Saturday, Nov. 21.

Conrad, Loftus, and Castillo again led the way for the Bearcats as they ran their way to a 28th place finish. Conrad placed 127th, while Loftus was 144th and Castillo was 145th. Also competing in the NCAA Championships for the Bearcats were Shafi, Matthies, Carlson, and Jack Kobylka (So., Napa, CA/Vintage HS).

Earlier in the year, the Bearcats took 13th place at the prestigious AAE Invitational at Lake Breeze Golf Course. Conrad earned 17th place out of 419 runners.