Seattle Pacific frosh Allison Cutting wins Apple Ridge Run 4k cross country title...

YAKIMA--Both Western Washington and Seattle Pacific were in athlete development mode Saturday as they rested their top runners while competing at Saturday's Apple Ridge Run on the site of the GNAC cross country championships on November 6th.

Seattle Pacific freshman Allison Cutting (left/photo courtesy SPU sports information) finished the abbreviated 4-kilometer course in 15 minutes, 45 seconds, well in front of runner-up Mary Rogers from Western Washington (16:05).

Cutting joined the SPU program after an outstanding career at Sequim High School. She won the Class 2A state cross country title in 2008 as a Wolves junior, then capped her senior year this past spring by winning 2A state crown in the 3,200 meters.

Her effort, along with the tight pack running of the next four SPU runners across the line, helped the Falcons place second in the team standing with 64 points. Western Washington won easily with 20 points.

After Rogers, Western's Rachael Johnson was third in 16:06, followed by teammates Phoebe Hartnett in 16:15; Kristi Fairbanks in16:35; and Jessica Boyer in 16:39.

“She was in control of the race, and she wasn’t scared to take it,” Falcons interim head coach Letiwe Patton said of Cutting's victory. “If she’d had someone to fight with (for the lead), she would have gone much better. About halfway through, she was all by herself, and she looked very good.”

"It was very encouraging, especially on the women's side with just 34 seconds separating our first group of runners," said Western coach Pee Wee Halsell. "We were trying to get our younger runners some real competitive experience."

Led by winner Rigoberto Jiminez, who ran 19:34 over the 6k course, Great Falls (MT) won the men's team title with 19 points, as they placed four runners in the top five.

Western Washington was second with 68 points, followed by host Central Washington in third with 76 points.  The Falcons finished fifth with 129 points.

Western's Graham Armstrong was sixth in 20:27. Tanner Boyd  placed 12th for the Vikings in 20:41, and Kyle Johnson was 18th in 20:47.

Jacob Wahlenmaier was one of three Seattle Pacific men who stayed within visual range of each other during their race, as he finished 24th. Close behind him at the finish were junior Nate Sleight placing 28th in 21:10 and freshman Josiah Sherwood taking 34th in 21:26.

The Falcons will race at next week's Sundodger Invitational in West Seattle, while Western takes the week off and races at the St. Martin's Invitational on September 25th in Lacey.

Complete results can be accessed here.  Meanwhile, you can read Seattle Pacific's release here, and Western Washington's release here.

In Portland on Friday, Seattle University's Hans Heitzinger and freshman Hannah Mittelstaedt led Seattle University to place in the middle of the pack in both the men’s and women’s races at the Pier Park Classic.

Heitzinger ran the men’s 8k race in 26.17 to place 16th and lead the Redhawk men to a fourth place finish in the eight-team meet. Joash Osoro from the University of Portland finished first in 24:43, fronting a 1-3-5-8-10 winning finish for Portland.

Seattle U placed fifth on the women’s side with 117 points. Portland also won the women’s with just 20 points, lead by Kellie Houser’s 17:51.37 first place finish. Willamette placed second again with 64 points, Northwest Christian third with 77, Clark College fourth with 111, and Seattle U was followed by Mt. Hood CC (186), Clackamas CC (190), and Highline CC (211).

Mittelstaedt was 20th in the 6k race in 19:20, as Portland's Kellie Houser too the win in 17:52.

SeattleU will also run at next week's Sundodger Invitational.

You can read SeattleU's release here.



NOTE:  The sports information offices of Seattle Pacific, SeattleU and Western Washington all provided content for this post.

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