Championship weekend for state's five NCAA Division I schools...
It’s Championship Week for the state’s five NCAA Division I schools, and here’s a quick guide to what’s about to go down Friday and Saturday:
PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIPS FOR NATIONALLY RANKED HUSKIES AND COUGARS
The Stanford Golf Course is the venue for Friday’s Pac-12 Championships, hosted by Stanford University.
The Pac-12 championship meet gets underway at 11:10 am with the women’s 6k race, followed by the men’s 8k race an hour later.
The Pac-12 Cross Country Championships will be televised live on the Pac-12 Networks (channel 628 on Comcast Seattle). On the call will be Jim Watson, Dwight Stones and Lewis Johnson.
The women's race features three of the top six teams in the nation based on the USTFCCCA coaches poll. Three-time defending champion Colorado is the top-ranked team in the nation, with Oregon coming in ranked third and host school Stanford ranking sixth.
From 2009 to 2013, though, parity reigned as five different programs stood on top of the league (Washington in 2009, Stanford in 2010, Colorado in 2011, Oregon in 2012 and Arizona in 2013).
Six of last year’s top 10 finishers and half of the top 20 return, paced by returning champion Dani Jones of Colorado and runner-up Katie Rainsberger, now racing for Washington after competing her first two years at Oregon.
The past two individual titles have been among the closest in league history. Two years ago, Washington’s Amy-Eloise Neale edged CU’s Erin Clark by just four-tenths of a second, while Jones beat out Rainsberger and Neale by 1.2 and 1.4 seconds, respectively, in last year’s race.
The Dawgs, who are ranked #16 in the USTFCCCA national coaches’ poll will debut junior Lilli Burdon. Burdon was sixth at Pac-12s a year ago for Oregon and an All-American in cross country, indoor, and outdoor track.
Washington State will be led by their All-American Vallery Korir, along with freshman Emma Jenkins from Camas, who has led the Cougars across the line in every meet so far this season.
The men’s race features six nationally ranked teams—defending champ and #4 Stanford, #7 Washington, #8 Colorado, #11 Oregon, #12 UCLA, and #29 Washington State.
Washington will be led by sophomore Tibebu Proctor, senior Tanner Anderson, and sophomore Talon Hull all of whom finished in the top-15 at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals in Madison two weeks ago. They’ll be joined by seniors Fred Huxham and Mahmoud Moussa. Moussa had his breakthrough race at last year’s Pac-12 championships in Springfield, Oregon, when he finished fifth.
Washington State will be led by Chandler Teigen, who has been the front-runner for the Cougs in nearly every meet this season.
Mt. Spokane product John Dressel of Colorado, a two-time All-American who was injured last season, is a runner to watch, after a pair of sixth-place finishes at the 2015 and 2016 Pac-12 title meets.
Washington’s release is available here, while Washington State’s is available here.
The link to live results is available here.
GONZAGA TO WCC CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Zags head to Provo for the West Coast Championships Saturday, hosted by Brigham Young University, where the #26 Bulldogs, who made the USTFCCCA men’s national ranking for the first time in school history, will contend with powerhouses and #2 BYU and #5 Portland.
"To start off with, our men are off to their best season in Gonzaga history," Director of GU Cross Country Pat Tyson said. "To win meets in Moscow, Colfax, Missoula, Lewiston, and Spokane (5-0) against mostly Inland Northwest collegiate teams is a new precedent. Add to the fact that our top seven placed ninth out of 36 NCAA Div. 1 regional teams at NCAA Pre Nationals two weeks ago, it confirms that the 2018 Gonzaga Cross Country team is incredibly special.”
"Our women are excited about the opportunity to head to Provo and compete in our conference championships," GU Women's Head Coach Jake Stewart said. "Collectively I believe we all know we still have our best race in front of us. We want to go into the meet eager, understand how we have to execute our race plan, and know that if we run to the best of our abilities we'll have the chance to feel really good about our day! That's all that we expect, do our best on the day.”
Gonzaga’s release is available here, which includes the link to live video of Saturday’s meet, along with live results.
SEATTLE UNIVERSITY HOSTS WAC CHAMPIONSHIPS AT JEFFERSON PARK GOLF COURSE
The Western Athletic Conference championship meet returns to Jefferson Park Golf Course on Beacon Hill Saturday, hosted by Seattle University, with the women’s 6k starting at 10 am, and the men’s 8k to follow at 11 am.
Redhawks head coach Kelly Sullivan expressed his excitement for Saturday’s event. “We are very excited to be hosting the 2018 WAC Cross Country Championships on one of the best collegiate courses in the country,” he said. “The Jefferson Park course is a 2000-meter loop that is tremendously spectator-friendly and creates a fantastic championship feel.”
Utah Valley and newcomer Cal Baptist are the favorites to win the men’s and women’s titles.
The Wolverines finished second in the WAC championship meet on a 3-2 tiebreaker with team champion UM-Kansas City, while the Lancers make their WAC debut after competing in Division II last year, where they finished third in the NCAA D2 championship meet.
Seattle University will be led in the men’s race by senior Eli Boudouris, who was 24th last year, and redshirt sophomore Nathan Pixler, a transfer from the University of Colorado. Boudouris is the school record holder in the steeplechase.
On the women’s side, the Redhawks will be led by sophomores Rachel Kastama and Megan Delorey, each of whom have been the top runners across the line during their three regular season meets.
For those not familiar with the Western Athletic Conference, top runners to watch include McMarshall Hartzenburg and Simon Bedard of Cal Baptist, both of whom were NCAA D2 All Americans last season; Marcus Johnson of UM-Kansas City, who was sixth last year; UT-Rio Grande Valley’s freshman sensation Abraham Chirchir; and Utah Valley junior Kevin Lynch and sophomore Anthony Ocegueda, who were third and fourth at last year’s championship meet.
Women to watch include Cal Baptist junior Anett Somogyi from Hungary, who was a NCAA D2 All-American last year; New Mexico State’s Julia Yescas, who was fourth in this meet last year; defending champion Mia Jerman of UM-Kansas City; UT-Rio Grande Valley freshman Mercy Chelangat; and the Utah Valley duo of Hannah Branch and Aisha Graham-Perez.
For those who can’t make the trek to Jefferson Park GC, the WAC will stream the meet on its Facebook page.
SeattleU’s release is available here, while the WAC Championship home page, which includes a link to its Facebook page and the live results is available here.
EASTERN WASHINGTON TO SACRAMENTO FOR BIG SKY TITLE MEET
Eastern Washington heads to Sacramento for Saturday’s Big Sky championship meet, with the men’s 8k race getting underway at 10 am, and the women’s 5k to follow an hour later.
Two-time defending national champion Northern Arizona is the team to watch in the men’s race, while the Lumberjack women’s squad looks to claim their third straight Big Sky title.
New Eagle coach Sam Reed goes into Sacramento with a very young team with only one upperclassman on the men’s side—senior Domenic Rehm from Medical Lake HS, while the women’s team consists entirely of freshmen and sophomores, led by sophomore Lily Tyrell from Selah.
In the 2017 championship meet, the Eagles’ mens’ squad finished ninth, while the women’s team finished eighth.
Eastern Washington’s release is available here.
paulmerca.blogspot.com will be on site for both the Pac-12 and Western Athletic Conference championship meets.
PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIPS FOR NATIONALLY RANKED HUSKIES AND COUGARS
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| Washington's Lilli Burdon makes her Husky debut at the Pac-12 championships (Paul Merca photo) |
The Pac-12 championship meet gets underway at 11:10 am with the women’s 6k race, followed by the men’s 8k race an hour later.
The Pac-12 Cross Country Championships will be televised live on the Pac-12 Networks (channel 628 on Comcast Seattle). On the call will be Jim Watson, Dwight Stones and Lewis Johnson.
The women's race features three of the top six teams in the nation based on the USTFCCCA coaches poll. Three-time defending champion Colorado is the top-ranked team in the nation, with Oregon coming in ranked third and host school Stanford ranking sixth.
From 2009 to 2013, though, parity reigned as five different programs stood on top of the league (Washington in 2009, Stanford in 2010, Colorado in 2011, Oregon in 2012 and Arizona in 2013).
Six of last year’s top 10 finishers and half of the top 20 return, paced by returning champion Dani Jones of Colorado and runner-up Katie Rainsberger, now racing for Washington after competing her first two years at Oregon.
The past two individual titles have been among the closest in league history. Two years ago, Washington’s Amy-Eloise Neale edged CU’s Erin Clark by just four-tenths of a second, while Jones beat out Rainsberger and Neale by 1.2 and 1.4 seconds, respectively, in last year’s race.
The Dawgs, who are ranked #16 in the USTFCCCA national coaches’ poll will debut junior Lilli Burdon. Burdon was sixth at Pac-12s a year ago for Oregon and an All-American in cross country, indoor, and outdoor track.
Washington State will be led by their All-American Vallery Korir, along with freshman Emma Jenkins from Camas, who has led the Cougars across the line in every meet so far this season.
The men’s race features six nationally ranked teams—defending champ and #4 Stanford, #7 Washington, #8 Colorado, #11 Oregon, #12 UCLA, and #29 Washington State.
Washington will be led by sophomore Tibebu Proctor, senior Tanner Anderson, and sophomore Talon Hull all of whom finished in the top-15 at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals in Madison two weeks ago. They’ll be joined by seniors Fred Huxham and Mahmoud Moussa. Moussa had his breakthrough race at last year’s Pac-12 championships in Springfield, Oregon, when he finished fifth.
Washington State will be led by Chandler Teigen, who has been the front-runner for the Cougs in nearly every meet this season.
Mt. Spokane product John Dressel of Colorado, a two-time All-American who was injured last season, is a runner to watch, after a pair of sixth-place finishes at the 2015 and 2016 Pac-12 title meets.
Washington’s release is available here, while Washington State’s is available here.
The link to live results is available here.
GONZAGA TO WCC CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Zags head to Provo for the West Coast Championships Saturday, hosted by Brigham Young University, where the #26 Bulldogs, who made the USTFCCCA men’s national ranking for the first time in school history, will contend with powerhouses and #2 BYU and #5 Portland.
"To start off with, our men are off to their best season in Gonzaga history," Director of GU Cross Country Pat Tyson said. "To win meets in Moscow, Colfax, Missoula, Lewiston, and Spokane (5-0) against mostly Inland Northwest collegiate teams is a new precedent. Add to the fact that our top seven placed ninth out of 36 NCAA Div. 1 regional teams at NCAA Pre Nationals two weeks ago, it confirms that the 2018 Gonzaga Cross Country team is incredibly special.”
"Our women are excited about the opportunity to head to Provo and compete in our conference championships," GU Women's Head Coach Jake Stewart said. "Collectively I believe we all know we still have our best race in front of us. We want to go into the meet eager, understand how we have to execute our race plan, and know that if we run to the best of our abilities we'll have the chance to feel really good about our day! That's all that we expect, do our best on the day.”
Gonzaga’s release is available here, which includes the link to live video of Saturday’s meet, along with live results.
SEATTLE UNIVERSITY HOSTS WAC CHAMPIONSHIPS AT JEFFERSON PARK GOLF COURSE
The Western Athletic Conference championship meet returns to Jefferson Park Golf Course on Beacon Hill Saturday, hosted by Seattle University, with the women’s 6k starting at 10 am, and the men’s 8k to follow at 11 am.
Redhawks head coach Kelly Sullivan expressed his excitement for Saturday’s event. “We are very excited to be hosting the 2018 WAC Cross Country Championships on one of the best collegiate courses in the country,” he said. “The Jefferson Park course is a 2000-meter loop that is tremendously spectator-friendly and creates a fantastic championship feel.”
Utah Valley and newcomer Cal Baptist are the favorites to win the men’s and women’s titles.
The Wolverines finished second in the WAC championship meet on a 3-2 tiebreaker with team champion UM-Kansas City, while the Lancers make their WAC debut after competing in Division II last year, where they finished third in the NCAA D2 championship meet.
Seattle University will be led in the men’s race by senior Eli Boudouris, who was 24th last year, and redshirt sophomore Nathan Pixler, a transfer from the University of Colorado. Boudouris is the school record holder in the steeplechase.
On the women’s side, the Redhawks will be led by sophomores Rachel Kastama and Megan Delorey, each of whom have been the top runners across the line during their three regular season meets.
For those not familiar with the Western Athletic Conference, top runners to watch include McMarshall Hartzenburg and Simon Bedard of Cal Baptist, both of whom were NCAA D2 All Americans last season; Marcus Johnson of UM-Kansas City, who was sixth last year; UT-Rio Grande Valley’s freshman sensation Abraham Chirchir; and Utah Valley junior Kevin Lynch and sophomore Anthony Ocegueda, who were third and fourth at last year’s championship meet.
Women to watch include Cal Baptist junior Anett Somogyi from Hungary, who was a NCAA D2 All-American last year; New Mexico State’s Julia Yescas, who was fourth in this meet last year; defending champion Mia Jerman of UM-Kansas City; UT-Rio Grande Valley freshman Mercy Chelangat; and the Utah Valley duo of Hannah Branch and Aisha Graham-Perez.
For those who can’t make the trek to Jefferson Park GC, the WAC will stream the meet on its Facebook page.
SeattleU’s release is available here, while the WAC Championship home page, which includes a link to its Facebook page and the live results is available here.
EASTERN WASHINGTON TO SACRAMENTO FOR BIG SKY TITLE MEET
Eastern Washington heads to Sacramento for Saturday’s Big Sky championship meet, with the men’s 8k race getting underway at 10 am, and the women’s 5k to follow an hour later.
Two-time defending national champion Northern Arizona is the team to watch in the men’s race, while the Lumberjack women’s squad looks to claim their third straight Big Sky title.
New Eagle coach Sam Reed goes into Sacramento with a very young team with only one upperclassman on the men’s side—senior Domenic Rehm from Medical Lake HS, while the women’s team consists entirely of freshmen and sophomores, led by sophomore Lily Tyrell from Selah.
In the 2017 championship meet, the Eagles’ mens’ squad finished ninth, while the women’s team finished eighth.
Eastern Washington’s release is available here.
paulmerca.blogspot.com will be on site for both the Pac-12 and Western Athletic Conference championship meets.
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