By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

LEWISTON, Idaho -- Zoe Heino (Fy., Portland, OR/Mountainside HS) placed 24th overall and was 21st among scorers to lead Willamette University in the 5-kilometer women's race at the Lewis-Clark State College Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 8. In the 8-kilometer men's race, Jay Chew (Fy., Elk Grove, CA/Laguna Creek HS) was WU's top finisher in 47th place (33rd among scorers).

The meet included NCAA Division I teams from the University of Idaho, Gonzaga University (Wash.), and the University of Montana. Central Washington University from NCAA Division II also competed. Willamette teams were the only NCAA Division III squads running at the meet. Teams competing from the NAIA were Eastern Oregon University in the women's race and Bushnell University (Ore.) in the men's race.

Final results in the women's race showed the University of Idaho with seven of the top eight times. Maya Koblyanski of Idaho led a 1-2-3 finish for the Vandals in 16:35, while Kelsey Swenson completed the course in 16:42 and Nathalia Campos was timed at 17:11. Annie Hill from the University of Montana was fourth in 17:22. Up next for Idaho were Leah Holmgren in fifth at 17:31, Abigail Thomas in sixth at 17:47, Chloe Overberg in seventh at 17:48, and Elise Abbott in eighth at 17:54.

Anna Grabowski from Gonzaga was ninth with a time of 18:00. Alyssa Bienfang of Gonzaga placed 10th at 18:06.

Heino's time for Willamette was 19:10. JJ Chatham (Fy., Jackson, Wyoming/Jackson Hole HS) took 32nd place in 19:43, and Aven Roberts (Fy., Missoula, MT/Hellgate HS) was 40th in 20:06. Also running for the Bearcats were Melissa Duncan (Jr., Canyon Country, CA/Canyon HS) in 20:30, Leila Fischer (Jr., Wenatchee, WA/Wenatchee HS) at 20:34, Anna Bikle (Fy., Woodside, CA/Half Moon Bay HS) at 20:50, and Leilani Luu (Fy., Colorado Springs, CO/Pine Creek HS) in 21:11.

Winning the men's race was Lorenz Herrmann from the University of Idaho in 24:05. Herrmann began a 1-2-3-4-5 finish for the Vandals on their way to the team championship. Also ending the race in the top five were Gabriel Dinnel in second at 24:18, Shea Mattson in third at 24:41, Sam Fulbright in fourth at 24:49, and Tim Stevens in fifth, also at 24:49.

Rogelio Mares from the University of Montana was sixth at 24:53. Nick Braz, running unattached, took seventh place in 24:58. Paul Talens of Gonzaga placed eighth at 25:00, while unattached runner Jeffrey Alfonso was ninth at 25:02. Sam Geiger from Gonzaga grabbed 10th place with a time of 25:11.

For Willamette, Chew reached the finish line in 26:40. Milo Greenberg was 51st in 27:00 and William Hennum (So., Philomath, OR/Liberty HS, NV) was 53rd in 27:23. Joshua Evans (So., Lafayette, CA/Acalanes HS) was timed at 28:13, Gilbert Sanchez Torres (Fy., Citrus Heights, CA/Bella Vista HS) completed the course in 29:00, and Ian Curtis (Sr., Eugene, OR/South Eugene HS) followed in 29:05.

Idaho won the women's team title with a score of 17 (1-2-3-5-6). Gonzaga placed second at 57, with Montana in third at 72, and Lewis-Clark State in fourth at 105. Willamette was fifth at 159, while Eastern Oregon placed sixth at 163, and Central Washington was seventh at 165.

In the men's race, Idaho's perfect score of 15 took first place, with Gonzaga in second at 54. Montana was third with a score of 90 and Lewis-Clark State placed fourth at 95. Central Washington was fifth at 130, Bushnell was sixth at 181, and Willamette placed seventh at 191.

The Bearcats are scheduled to compete at the 2022 Northwest Conference Cross Country Championships on Saturday, Oct. 29 in Forest Grove, Oregon. Pacific University will host the NWC meet, with the first race set for 10 a.m. (PDT).