By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
SALEM, Ore. -- Willamette University will host the 2016 NCAA Division III West Region Cross Country Championships on Saturday, Nov. 12 at Bush's Pasture Park. The women's 6-kilometer race will begin at 10 a.m. (PST), with the men's 8-kilometer race set for 11 a.m.
Willamette is the defending women's champion in the West Region. Last year's championship was the second consecutive Regional title for the Bearcat women's team.
The defending West Region men's champion is Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. Willamette placed third last season in the men's West Region standings and received a team at-large bid to the NCAA Championships
As in recent years, the top two teams in each race this weekend will earn automatic bids to the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships, set for Saturday, Nov. 19 in Louisville, Kentucky. Additional teams may be selected for at-large bids on Sunday, Nov. 13.
Also qualifying for the NCAA Championships will be the top seven individuals in each race from teams that are not selected. Spalding University (Ky.) will host the championships at Sawyer State Park.
Womens 6-Kilometer Race
The women's race will include three teams that are nationally ranked in the NCAA Division III Poll. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (Calif.) is listed at #12, while Colorado College is #23 and Whitworth University is #32.
CMS is ranked #1 in the West Region. Colorado College follows at #2, with Whitworth at #3 and Willamette at #4. Pomona-Pitzer (Calif.) is #5.
At last year's West Region Championships, Willamette won the title with a score of 64. CMS took second place at 79 and Whitworth was third at 87.
Five of the top 10 runners from last season's 6-kilometer race are back to compete again this season. Maya Weigel from Pomona-Pitzer will defend her individual championship, which she achieved by completing last year's race in 21:24.98 in Claremont, California. Weigel also won the 2014 West Region title. Olivia Mancl (Sr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS) of Willamette was second last season in 21:46.32.
Other returning athletes who earning top 10 finishes in 2015 are Allison Wood of Whitworth, who placed seventh, Stephanie Spencer from Pacific University, who took eighth, and Allysa Warling from Colorado College, who placed 10th.
Mancl and teammates Hannah Swanson (Jr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS) and Ami Boucher (Sr., Concord, CA/Northgate HS) will lead the Bearcats. At the Northwest Conference Championships on Oct. 29, Mancl placed first in the 6-kilometer women's race in 20:53.8, while Swanson took third place and Boucher was seventh. All three earned First Team All-NWC honors. It was Mancl's second consecutive NWC individual title.
Whitworth is led by freshman Kayla Leland. She earned second place at the NWC Championships. Wood placed fourth for the Pirates, and Bailey Scott finished fifth. Whitworth won the NWC title with a score of 42, while Willamette placed second at 51.
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps recently won the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) title with a score of 33. Pomona-Pitzer placed second in the SCIAC with a score of 75 and Occidental College (Calif.) was third at 93. Colorado College took first place in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) with a score of 18.
The individual SCIAC championship was claimed by Weigel from Pomona-Pitzer in 22:39.04. Julisss Tobias from Whittier College (Calif.) was second, with Bryn McKillop of CMS in third and Carmen Mejia of CMS in fourth. Malea Martin from CMS was fifth.
Leah Wessley from Colorado College won the individual title at the SCAC Championships. Colorado College runners also placed second, fourth and fifth. Katie Sandfort was second, while Stefani Messick was fourth and Warling was fifth.
Mens 8-Kilometer Race
Three of the men's teams competing for the West Region championship are nationally ranked in the most recent NCAA Division III Poll. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps is ranked #8, while Pomona-Pitzer is #10 and Whittier is #24.
In the West Region rankings, CMS is #1, Pomona-Pitzer is #3 and Whittier is #3. Willamette holds the #4 ranking, and Pacific Lutheran University is ranked #5.
Last season, CMS won the West Region championship with a score of 51. Pomona-Pitzer was second at 52 and Willamette placed third at 109.
Just three of the top 10 finishers in last year's 8-kilometer race are back this season. Brad Hodkinson from Pacific Lutheran placed fourth a year ago, while Geremia Lizier-Zmudzinksi from University of Puget Sound was fifth, and Kyle Lund of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps was ninth. Tyler Shipley from Puget Sound, a senior last season, won the 2015 individual championship in 25:04.48.
Willamette's top runners at the NWC Championshps were Patrick Loftus (Jr., Santa Rosa, CA/Sonoma Academy), Michael Montague (Fr., San Diego, CA/Canyon Crest Academy), Keith Carlson (So., Bainbridge Island, WA//Bainbridge HS), Ryan Morris-McDermott (So., Orinda, CA/Miramonte HS), and Ricardo Castillo-Flores (So./Jr., Hood River, OR/Hood River Valley HS).
Loftus earned second place in the NWC, while Montague placed sixth, as both runners received First Team All-NWC recognition. Carlson took eighth place, Morris-McDermott was ninth, and Castillo-Flores placed 11th. Montague, Carlson, Morris-McDermott and Castillo-Flores earned Second Team All-NWC honors, alsong with teammate Ross Enlow (Fr., Unalaska, AK/Unalaska HS), who placed 14th.
Hodkinson of Pacific Lutheran won the NWC individual title with a time of 24:56.3. Loftus was second for Willamette in 25:30.3. Blake Slattengren from Lewis & Clark College was third, and Lieam Monheim from L&C was fourth. Grant Bingham of Whitworth finished fifth.
Willamette won its fifth consecutive NWC team championship with a score of 36. Pacific Lutheran was second at 81 and Whitman College was third at 90.
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps won this year's SCAC championship. Pomona-Pitzer claimed second place and Whittier was third. It was a close competition, with CMS earning a score of 47, with Pomona-Pitzer at 51 and Whittier at 52. Colorado College claimed first place in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) by achieving a score of 25.
Julian Sandoval from Whittier took first place in the SCIAC individual competition by reaching the finish line in 25:48.77. Joshua Sealand of CMS was second and Charles Watson of Pomona-Pitzher was third. Andy Reischling from Pomona-Pitzer placed fourth and Thomas D'Anieri of CMS earned fifth place.
At the SCAC Championships, Peter Callan of Colorado College was the winner in 25:59.28. Tony Calderon of Colorado College took fourth place and teammate Conor Terhune was fifth.
2016 NCAA Division III
West Region Cross Country
Championships
Bush's Pasture Park
Salem, Ore.
Saturday, Nov. 12
Women's 6K Race -- 10 a.m.
Men's 8K Race -- 11 a.m.
