Whitman's Jennie Wood, a senior running her first season of cross country, made a spectacular debut Friday in her first-ever race, placing 10th in a field dominated by NCAA Div. I runners at the University of Idaho Invitational in Moscow.
Wood, who played fall soccer in her first three years at Whitman, ran the 4,000-kilometer (about 2.5 miles) race in 15 minutes, 39 seconds. Megan Maynard, a senior All-American at Washington State, won the race in 15 minutes, 3.1 seconds.
"Jennie ran very, very well, much better than anyone could have expected," Whitman coach Carol Feezell said. "She was right up there with the Division I women, and she still could have run a better race. This was her first cross country race ever, so she really doesn't know what she's doing it yet. What's important is that she loved it, she felt great and she had a good time. Her potential to do better and get stronger is tremendous."
As a team, the Whitman women placed seventh with a 169 place points for their top five runners. Idaho won the women's team scoring with 38 points. On the men's side, Washington State took top honors with 45 points, with Whitman placing eighth with 199 points.
"Neither of our teams had a great performance, but that really wasn't our goal," Feezell said. "We're taking a gradual approach to our early-season training. We want to avoid early injuries and peak late in the season. We're looking two months down the road at regionals and a chance to qualify for nationals."
In the men's four-mile race, senior Lars Tysver finished 23 minutes, placing 39th in a field of 81 runners. Oscar Franco-Perry, a junior at Washington State, won the race in 20 minutes, 46 seconds.
"Our men's team ran without one of its top runners in freshman Braden Burkholder, who is going to push Lars for our No. 1 spot," Feezell said.
Rounding out the top five for the Whitman men were sophomore Andrew Moore, 53rd, 23:50.9; junior Joel Byersdorfer, 55th, 23:57.9; sophomore Ryan Gold, 62nd, 24:19.1; and sophomore Jerome Schwartz, 64th, 24:42.6.
Also placing for the Missionary men were freshman Kirk Blais, 65th, 24:51.4; freshman Charlie Gardner, 73rd, 25:32.9; sophomore Dan Overgaag, 78th, 26:25.7; and sophomore Dan Cadol, 80th, 28:13.3.
Joining Wood in the top five Whitman women were senior Heather Barr, 35th, 16:35.9; senior Liz Briggs, 42nd, 16:47; senior Heather Koertje, 45th, 16:52; and freshman Jeanne Knechtges, 47th, 16:57.
Others running for the Whitman women were freshman Libby Winters, 59th, 17:32; junior Piper Foster, 66th, 17:50; sophomore Mary Jo Southwick, 72nd, 18:21; freshman Flo Larkin, 79th, 19:10; and junior Amanda Compton, 80th, 19:11.
Friday's races were run on the University of Idaho golf course in rainy and windy weather. Other schools competing, in addition to Idaho and Washington State, were Gonzaga, Eastern Washington, Portland State, Lewis-Clark State, Whitworth and Clackamas Community College.
Whitman hosts its annual invitational meet next Saturday, Sept. 16, at Ft. Walla Walla Park.
Running in only her second cross country race ever, Whitman senior Jennie Wood was victorious at the Whitman Invitational Saturday, winning the women's 5,000 meters in 19 minutes, 10.83 seconds. Wood, who played fall soccer in her first three years at Whitman, outran her nearest competitor by more than six seconds.
"I knew Jennie could win this race, but it wasn't easy for her," Whitman coach Carol Feezell said. "She's still very inexperienced and basically just learning as she goes. She told me afterwards that she ran outside her comfort zone the entire way. It was great she was able to do that and still win the race. Winning your first race is important because it makes want to win more."
Running outside one's comfort zone is not easy for any distance runner, Feezell said. "It was something I stressed in practice a lot this past week. Every runner has a comfort zone, and then there is a point at which you go just a little beyond that. It takes a huge amount of concentration and strength and drive to run a race outside your comfort zone. But that's what it's going to take if Jennie wants to win conference and qualify for nationals."
With four runners placing in the top eight, the Whitworth women's team won the team scoring Saturday with 32 place points for its top five finishers. Whitman was second with 42 points, followed by George Fox University with 67 points, Lewis & Clark with 99 points, and the Community Colleges of Spokane with 129 points.
In the men's 8,000 meters Saturday, also held at Ft. Walla Walla Park, Lewis & Clark turned in a dominating performance, sweeping the top four individual places. LC's Chris Mayer won the race in 25 minutes, 41.79 seconds.
The Lewis & Clark men won the team scoring with 17 points. The Community Colleges of Spokane was second with 51 points. George Fox edged Whitworth, 85 to 89, for third place. Whitman was fifth with 143 points.
Despite missing last week's first race and curtailing his workouts due to illness, Whitman freshman Braden Burkholder paced the Missionaries, placing 25th in 28:03.72. Senior Lars Tysver was close behind in 28th place in 28:15.99. "Braden ran a very good first race, especially after he's been sick," Feezell said. "Both he and Lars will continue to get stronger and faster."
Placing second among the Whitman women was senior Heather Barr, who is running only her second season of college cross country. She placed ninth Saturday in 19:57.35, just a second out of eighth place. "Heather battled injuries last season, but she's had a good summer of training and it really showed today," Feezell said. "She's very determined this season."
Rounding out the top five for the Whitman women were freshman Jeanne Knechtges, 10th, 19:59.68; senior Heather Koertje, 12th, 20:08.09; and senior Liz Briggs, 14th, 20:11.25.
"I really encouraged our women to go after the Whitworth runners," Feezell said. "We didn't quite catch Whitworth in the team scoring, but we came close. I really feel our women's team will continue to get stronger and faster from race to race."
Wren McNally, a senior and another former soccer player, placed 19th in 20:45.91. Others running for the Missionaries were Libby Winters, 36th, 21:42; Piper Foster, 37th, 21:52.21; Mary Jo Southwick, 39th, 22:12.99; Alison Gillespie, 40th, 22:18.42; Flo Larkin, 46th, 22:40.17; and Whitney Blackman, 57th, 24:58.40.
Filling out the top five for the Whitman men were sophomore Ryan Gold, 40th, 29:25.72; junior Joel Byersdorfer, 42nd, 29:34.29; and sophomore Jerome Schwartz, 50th, 30:36.56.
Also placing for the Missionaries were Kirk Blais, 52nd, 31:08.66; Charlie Gardner, 53rd, 31:15.26; Dan Overgaag, 57th, 33:47.52; and Dan Cadol, 60th, 35:03.30.
Jennie Wood placed 13th among 152 runners and led the Whitman women's team to a fourth-place finish in the women's open 6,000 meters Saturday morning at the ninth annual Sundodger Invitational, which was hosted by the University of Washington at Seattle's Lincoln Park.
In the men's open 8,000 meters, Lars Tysver posted Whitman's best effort, placing 54th in a field of 155 competitors. The Missionary men placed 12th in the team scoring.
Rachel Ross of Seattle Pacific won the women's open 6,000 in a time of 21 minutes, 50.18 seconds. Wood, who was timed in 22:59.36, finished less than a half second out of 12 place.
Seattle Pacific, an NCAA Div. II school, won the women's team scoring with 40 place points for its top five runners. Central Washington University was second with 72 points, while Northwest College was third with 124 points. Whitman's fourth-place total was 155. A total of 15 teams competed.
"Our women ran really well again today," Whitman coach Carol Feezell said. "We beat some really good teams like Simon Fraser, which has always had an excellent cross country team, and Lewis-Clark State. We also beat Puget Sound, the only other Northwest Conference school in the race, by a significant amount, so that was good to see."
Others placing for the Whitman women included Liz Briggs, 33rd, 23:44.67; Heather Barr, 35th, 23:48.94; Jeanne Knechtges, 48th, 24:20.79; Heather Koertje, 51st, 24:27.22; and Wren McNally, 56th, 24:34.43. Also placing were Piper Foster, 94th, 25:34.93, and Libby Winters, 95th, 25:35.44.
"All of the women shaved off a little more from their times," Feezell said. "We're continuing to train hard and get in better race shape."
Jonathan Swanson, representing a club team, won the men's open 8,000 in 24:58.92. Tysver's team-best time was 27:13.44. Next in line for Whitman were Braden Burkholder, 96th, 28:23.13; Joel Byersdorfer, 108th, 28:36.37; Ryan Gold, 117th, 29:10.30; Jerome Schwartz, 119th, 29:11.16; Kirk Blais, 128th, 29:35.44; Charlie Gardner, 148th, 31:15.34; and Dan Overgaag, 153rd, 32:59.26.
"All of the men except Braden lowered their times from last week, and Braden still ran a good race," Feezell said. "That's all we want them to do, is just try to get better each week. They were all happy with the races they ran today."
The Sundodger event also included two invitational races for the NCAA Div. I schools. University of Washington teams won both invitational events.
Running in only the second 5,000-meter race of her collegiate career, Whitman's Jennie Wood placed fifth in a field of 85 runners in the NCAA DIII National Preview Meet Friday morning at the Wandermere Golf Course in Spokane.
Wood, a senior running her first season of cross country, finished in 18 minutes, 35.6 seconds -- about four seconds out of fourth place. She knocked about 35 seconds off the time she posted earlier this month in winning the 5,000 meters at the Whitman Invitational.
"Jennie keeps getting better and better," Whitman coach Carol Feezell said. "She did a great job to place fifth in a race like this."
Courtney Clinard of Nebraska Wesleyan University won the women's race in 18:12.8, edging the University of Puget Sound's Dana Boyle by one second. St. Olaf College placed four runners in the top eight and won the women's team scoring with 41 place points for its top five finishers. Nebraska Wesleyan was second with 64 points, followed by Pacific Lutheran with 87 points, Whitworth with 97 and Whitman with 114. Grinnell, Puget Sound and Lewis & Clark rounded out the women's field.
In the men's 8,000 meters, freshman Braden Burkholder led the Missionaries with a time of 27 minutes, 2.9 seconds, which placed him 41st in a field of 93 runners. He knocked a full minute off his time at the Whitman Invitational, and more than 80 seconds off his time in last week's crowded Sundodger Invitational in Seattle.
"That was a great race for Braden," Feezell said. "His PR (personal best time) by far."
Running without senior leader Lars Tysver, who missed the meet because of academic commitments, the Whitman men placed ninth among nine teams. North Central College, the three-time defending men's champion, placed first in the men's team scoring with 55 points. Nebraska Wesleyan was second with 65 points and Lewis & Clark College third with 71 points. Thor Esbensen of Nebraska Wesleyan won the race in 24:54.6
Three seniors and a freshman filled out the top five for the Whitman women. Liz Briggs placed 20th in 19:21.4, a few steps ahead of Heather Barr, who was 21st in 19:41.7. "Liz ran a very strong, tough race," Feezell said. "She stayed in contact Jennie nearly the whole way. Heather Barr also ran much better than either she or I expected."
Heather Koertje placed placed 31st for Whitman in 19:41.7, while freshman Jeanne Knechtges, who was 40th in 20:41.3. "Heather Koertje still has a ways to go, but she always starts the season slowly," Feezell said. "She'll be right there at the end. She always is."
Also placing for the Missionary women were Alison Gillespie, 50th, 20:46.0; Mary Jo Southwick, 58th, 21:05.0; and Libby Winters, 59th, 21:06.0.
"It was a good race for our women," Feezell said. "We finished behind both Whitworth and Pacific Lutheran from our own conference, but that doesn't really bother me at this point. This is the way we've planned the season. We're going to get stronger as the season goes along and peak at the regional meet."
After Burkholder, junior Joel Byersdorfer had the next-best finish for the Whitman men. Byersdorfer placed 77th in 29:21.8, just ahead of sophomore teammates Ryan Gold (78th, 29:22.4) and Jerome Schwartz (79th, 29:23.0). "Joel, Ryan and Jerome ran in a good, tight group," Feezell said. "They ran well together."
Freshman Kirk Blais was the fifth Missionary finisher, placing 84th in 29:51.0. Also running for Whitman were sophomores Dan Overgaag, 90th, 32:05.7, and Dan Cadol, 93rd, 36:34.5. Cadol suffered numbness in one leg during the race, which "slowed him way down," Feezell said. "But he still finished the race. That was a courageous effort on his part."
By design, both of her teams "ran very tired today," Feezell said. "We ran a very hard workout less than 48 hours before the race, so they were all very tired. This race was more of a training run for us than a real race. Our runners still competed very hard, which was great to see."
Friday's meet was hosted by Whitworth College. The NCAA DIII national championships will be held on the same course in November.
Fatigued by a week of mid-term exams and a half-season of hard training, Jennie Wood and the Whitman women's cross country team still had enough gas in the tank Saturday to win the Warrior Island Invitational at Chief Timothy State Park near Clarkston, Wash.
Running on a tough, slow course, Wood won the women's 5,000 meters in 19:25.75 -- beating her nearest competitor, Lisa Paxton of Lewis-Clark State College (LCSC), by nearly 20 seconds.
With four runners placing in the top seven, the Missionary women won the team scoring with 28 place points for its top five finishers. Whitman also won the women's race at last year's Warrior Island Invitational. LCSC, the host school, was second on Saturday with 42 points. Northwest Nazarene University (NNU), the only school at the meet, was third with 50 points.
In the men's 8,000 meters, Whitman's Lars Tysver and Braden Burholder placed ninth and 10th, respectively, in times of 28:08.42 and 28:12.37. NNU won the men's team scoring with 26 points. LCSC was next with 35 points, followed by Whitman and its 69 points.
Wood, a senior running her first year of cross country, picked up her second victory at 5,000 meters in only her third race at that distance. "Jennie's time wasn't very good, but this is a very slow, difficult course, and none of the times were very good," Whitman coach Carol Feezell said. "Jennie also won quite easily and really didn't have anyone to push her."
Liz Briggs and Heather Koertje, two more Whitman seniors, placed third and fourth, respectively, in times of 19:49.25 and 19:50.97. "Liz has been one of most consistent runners, and Heather is starting to close the gap as the season goes along, which is what we expected," Feezell said.
Heather Barr, another Missionary senior, also had a good race, placing seventh in 19:58.50. Others placing for Whitman were Wren McNally, 14th, 20:46.52; Jeannie Knechtges, 22nd, 21:31.23; Piper Foster, 23rd, 21:33.46; Libby Winters, 25th, 21:42.46; and Flo Larkin, 28th, 22:02.34.
Aaron Matthias of Northwest Nazarene won the men's race in 26:47.30.
"Both Lars and Braden ran well as our top two," Feezell said. Whitman's next two finishers, Jerome Schwartz and Joel Byersdorfer, were 19th and 20th, respectively, in times of 30:10.72 and 30:29.82. Running his first race of the season after recovering from leg problems, Andrew Moore was 22nd in 31:37.16.
"That was good to have Andrew back," Feezell said. "He has the potential to be one of our top runners.
Others placing for the Whitman men were Matt Griebner, 23rd, 32:24.44; Charlie Gardner, 25th, 32:55.24; and Pat Meath, 36th, 37:39.71. Meath, a sprinter on Whitman's spring track team, is using cross country as part of his training program, Feezell noted.
On a cold and drizzly Saturday morning just outside Tacoma, Wash., Jennie Wood led the Whitman women's cross country team to a sixth-place finish in a crowded 15-team pool at the 25th annual Pacific Lutheran Invitational at Fort Steilacoom Park.
Wood, who finished the 5,000-meter course in 18 minutes, 42.6 seconds, had the fifth-best time among Northwest Conference (NWC) runners. In relation to conference opponents, the Missionary women placed third in the team scoring, losing out to Pacific Lutheran and Whitworth but beating George Fox, Linfield, Lewis & Clark, and Puget Sound.
In the men's 8,000 meters, freshman Braden Burkholder led Whitman by placing 75th in a field of 166 runners. As a team, the Missionary men placed 14th among 16 schools, finishing just nine points behind Linfield.
Rebecca Moore, representing the Oregon State University cross country club, won the women's race in 17:38.5. Lia Ossiander of Pacific Lutheran topped all NWC runners, placing fourth in 17:56.6.
Central Washington was an easy winner in the women's team scoring with 42 place points for its top five runners. Pacific Lutheran was next with 104 points, followed by Simon Fraser with 114, Whitworth with 123, and Southern Oregon with 138.
With 162 points, the Whitman women finished five points ahead of seventh-place George Fox.
Running second for the Missionary women was Heather Koertje, who placed 28th overall (eighth among NWC runners) in a time of 19:03.8. Rounding out the Whitman top five were Heather Barr, 35th, 19:15.1; Liz Briggs, 41st, 19:25.7; and freshman Jeanne Knechtges, 71st, 20:07.0.
Others running for the Missionaries were freshmen Flo Larkin, 98th, 20:51.7; Libby Winters, 112th, 21:24.3; and Whitney Blackman, 145th, 23:45.
Whitman coach Carol Feezell was pleased with her team's performance. "The women didn't run as well as they can, but they are still working really hard in practice," Feezell said. "Thursday was our toughest day of practice yet, and this meet was really just another portion of our training. Our goal is to win at regionals."
Feezell noticed solid improvement in a few of her runners. "Heather Koertje continues to improve as the season progresses, just like last year, and Flo ran the best race of her career." Larkin's time was her personal best.
Miguel Galeana, representing a club team, won the men's race in 24:13.7. Linfield's Paul Davis placed fifth in 25:01.3 to lead all NWC competitors.
Simon Fraser was first in the men's team scoring with 57 points. Two NWC schools, Puget Sound and Lewis & Clark, were next in line with 75 and 111 points, respectively. Whitman's team total was 395.
Burkholder led the Missionaries with a time of 27:24. Senior Lars Tysver had Whitman's next best effort, placing 86th in 27:38. Others placing were Joel Byersdorfer, 101st, 28:08 (personal-best time); Jerome Schwartz, 123rd, 29:03; and Matt Griebner, 143rd, 30:10.
The Missionary men raced with only the minimum five participants (for team scoring) due to injury. Charlie Gardner and Kirk Blais cheered their Whitman teammates from the sidelines. Gardner is battling shin splints, while Blais strained a hamstring earlier in the week.
"We're all running tired right now," Feezell said.
Despite losing time to a wrong turn, Whitman's Jennie Wood placed fifth in a field of 107 runners at the Bigfoot Open cross country meet Saturday morning in Spokane, Wash. Wood completed the 5,000-meter course in 19 minutes, 30 seconds. She finished three seconds out of fourth place and just nine seconds out of second place.
"Jennie got lost and went the wrong way at one point," Whitman coach Carol Feezell said. "She got passed by a bunch of runners, but she was caught back up again and finished strong."
Hosted by Spokane Falls Community, Saturday's meet drew 11 women's teams and 15 men's squads. For the Missionary runners, it was their last competition before they host the Northwest Conference (NWC) championships on Saturday, Oct. 28, at Ft. Walla Walla Park.
"This race today was just what we wanted the week before conference," Feezell said. "All of our runners had good, hard races, and good, solid performances."
The Whitman women's team, which left three of its top runners home, placed seventh. "We were missing Liz Briggs, Heather Koertje and Heather Barr, either because they were sick or just worn out," Feezell said.
Led by Lars Tysver, who placed 48th among 129 runners, the Missionary men placed 12th as a team. Tysver finished the 8,000 meters in 27:36.
Rounding out Whitman's top five in the women's race were Wren McNally, 21st, 20:18.70; Jeanne Knechtges, 42nd, 20:53; Flo Larkin, 61st, 21:40; and Piper Foster, 63rd, 21:46. Also racing for the Missionary women were Alison Gillespie, 65th, 21:50; Libby Winters, 68th, 21:53; Mary Southwick, 76th, 22:05; and Whitney Blackman, 104th, 24:42.
In the top five for the Whitman men, after Tysver, were Braden Burkholder, 58th, 28:00; Joel Byersdorfer, 95th, 29:09; and Ryan Gold, 97th, 29:14. Others running were Mark Wilson, 113th, 31:28; Dan Overgaag, 117th, 32:19; and Dan Cadol, 121st, 35:09.
Other than Whitman, Whitworth was the only NWC school in the Bigfoot Open. Both Wood and Tysver placed ahead of any of their Whitworth competitors.
Janet Collar, a Spokane Community College (SCC) graduate, won the women's race in 18:54. A SCC alumni squad won the women's team scoring with 72 place points for its top five finishers. Lewis-Clark State College was second with 78 points and Whitworth third with 80 points
Shawn Beitelspacher, also a SCC graduate, won the men's 8,000 meters in 25:32. Eastern Oregon University was first in the men's team scoring with 46 points, a single point ahead of the SCC alumni team.
As the Missionaries turn the attention to next week's conference championships, the women's team is focused on trying to defend the title it won last year, Feezell said. "We may not be the favorite this time, but our goal is to surprise the whole conference and come out on top again. Our goal with the men's team is that everyone runs a personal-best time."
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| In a photo taken in September, Whitman's Jennie Wood talks with newspaper reporter Ken Morgan after winning the Whitman Invitational. Wood placed fourth in Saturday's Northwest Conference Championships. |
Despite having lost five quality seniors to graduation and a sixth top runner to injury, the Whitman women's cross country team came remarkably close to defending its Northwest Conference cross country title Saturday morning at Ft. Walla Walla Park.
Led by senior Jennie Wood, the Missionary women placed second in the nine-school field, losing by just 13 points to Willamette University. Wood, who is running her first season of cross country after three years of varsity soccer, placed fourth in the 5,000 meters in 18:59.44, one notch in front of Willamette's top finisher.
Willamette claimed the women's crown with 50 place points for its top five runners. Whitman was second with 63 points and Whitworth third with 72 points. Pacific Lutheran was a close fourth with 76 points.
Whitman coach Carol Feezell was nothing less than thrilled with her women's team. "I am more happy with our second-place finish this year than I was with our first-place finish last year, if that's possible," Feezell said. "The challenge facing this year's team was much greater. Our women ran with so much courage and determination today, just to beat Whitworth and Pacific Lutheran. Coming as close as we did to beating Willamette was great."
Wood earned first-team all-conference honors by placing in the top seven. Two more Missionary seniors, Heather Koertje and Liz Briggs, walked away with second-team all-NWC recognition. Koertje, who placed fourth in last year's championships, finished 12th this time around in 19:17.45. Briggs was 14th in 19:19.23.
Whitman's next two runners, also seniors, were not far behind. Heather Barr was 16th in 19:27.24 while Wren McNally, another converted soccer player, placed 17th in 19:29.62.
"The women ran their race as such a tight group," Feezell said. "They did exactly what they needed to do to place as high as they did in the team scoring. What's more encouraging is that I don't think we've quite hit our peak yet. The plan all fall has been to peak at regionals in two weeks."
As they have all season, the Missionaries ran without sophomore Karin Pfeiffer-Hoyt, who placed sixth in the conference championships last season as a freshman. Pfeiffer-Hoyt has yet to recover from a springtime stress fracture in one of her shins.
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| In a photo taken earlier this fall, Whitman's Liz Briggs gets a contratulatory hug from coach Carol Feezell. Briggs earned second-team all-NWC honors Saturday in the conference championships. |
"Had Karin been healthy this fall, I think it's very possible the women could have defended their conference title," Feezell said. "She is very, very competitive. Karin would have been right there with Jennie, fighting for the top spot on our team."
Others running for the Whitman women Saturday were Jeanne Knechtges, 45th, 20:44.59; Alison Gillespie, 46th, 20:47.34; Piper Foster, 51st, 21:02.88; Flo Larkin, 55th, 21:28.30; and Libby Winters, 61st, 21:44.92. There were a total of 77 runners in the women's race.
Pacific Lutheran's Lia Ossiander, who placed second last year as a sophomore, won Saturday's race in 18:08.11. One of her teammates, senior Maree George-Milles, was second in 18:31.87. George-Milles, who missed last season because of illness, placed fifth at the NCAA DIII national championships in 1998.
Dana Boyle, a University of Puget Sound junior, took third in Saturday's race in 18:52.20. Boyle won the women's NWC title two years ago.
The NCAA DIII west regionals are set for Saturday, Nov. 11, in Chino, Calif. The women's team that wins that race will advance to the NCAA national championships. The top six runners not on that winning team also will earn berths at nationals.
"As I said, the hope is that our women's team will peak at the regionals," Feezell said. If the Missionaries are not able to win that race, she added, Wood has a "definite shot at being one of the six not on the winning team."
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| Whitman freshman Braden Burkholder (#3) had Whitman's best finish in Saturday's conference championships. In this photo taken in September, Burkholder is trailed by Missionary sophomore Dan Overgaag. |
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| Whitman senior Lars Tysver wrapped up four years of collegiate competition at Saturday's NWC championships at Ft. Walla Walla Park. |
In a race dominated and won by the University of Puget Sound (UPS), freshman Braden Burkholder gave Whitman its top men's finish in Saturday's Northwest Conference Cross Country Championships at Ft. Walla Walla Park.
Burkholder placed 26th in a field of 79 runners, finishing the 8,000 meters in 27:17.75. Despite rain-soaked conditions, Burkholder knocked about 40 seconds off the time he posted on the same course earlier this season at the Whitman Invitational
Whitman senior Lars Tysver placed 37th in 27:50.07, or about 26 seconds better than his time at the Whitman Invitational. Joel Byersdorfer cut more than 30 seconds from his early-season time, placing 58th in 29:01.29.
Rounding out the Whitman top five were Ryan Gold, who was 63rd in 29:31.97, and Jerome Schwartz, who trimmed nearly 40 seconds from his Whitman Invitational time to place 67th in 29:57.87.
Also running for Whitman were Mark Wilson, 71st, 30:15.01; Kirk Blais, 75th, 32:02.97; and Dan Overgaag, 76th, 32:05.86.
"Our men's team knows it isn't as competitive with some of the other teams in the conference," Whitman coach Carol Feezell said. "What was important to me is that our men all had smiles on their faces after today's race. They were happy with the improvements they've made on an individual basis. We had a couple of people with personal-best times, and several of them ran much better times than earlier in the season, despite the wet, slick conditions we had today. That shows me a lot, to see them run much faster when the conditions were much worse."
With its top three runners placing second, third and fourth, UPS won its second straight NWC title. The Loggers totaled just 29 place points for their top runners, finishing well ahead of second-place Lewis & Clark and its 66 points. Willamette was third with 69 points.
The Missionary men totaled 210 points for their top five, placing seventh in front of both Linfield and Pacific.
Willamette's Aaron Young, a freshman, won the men's race in 25:30.30, outrunning his nearest competitor by almost 30 seconds.
Whitman's Jennie Wood added another stirring chapter to her spectacular senior season Saturday morning, earning a ticket to the NCAA DIII national cross country championships by placing seventh in a field of 104 runners at the West Region Meet in Chino, Calif.
Wood, who is running her first season of collegiate cross country, ran the 5,000-meter course in Chino's Prado Park in a flat 19 minutes. She advances to the national championships, which are next Saturday, Nov. 18, in Spokane, Wash., because she was one of the top six individuals not on the winning team.
With about 300 yards left in Saturday's race, Wood still needed to pass a few runners to secure a ticket to nationals, Whitman coach Carol Feezell said. "It didn't look good for Jennie at that point," Feezell said. "She had a pained look on her face, and if anything she looked as if she was slowing. When it came down to the end, though, Jennie had the inner strength to pass who she needed to pass. She gave that race every last bit of energy that she had."
As a team, the Missionaries placed third among 14 schools with 87 place points for their top five finishers. Willamette, one of Whitman's Northwest Conference rivals, placed first with 71 points to qualify its entire team for nationals. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps was a close second with 76 points.
"One of our top runners didn't feel well today and really struggled to just to finish the race," Feezell said. "Had she been feeling better and been able to run her normal race, I really think we would have placed first as team."
Whitman's Heather Koertje placed 10th overall in 19:12.1. "Heather ran a strong race and just missed qualifying for nationals as an individual," Feezell said. "She missed it by two spots."
Wren McNally, another senior running her first season of cross country, ran her best race of the season, placing 14th in 19:16. "Wren was just outstanding today," Feezell said. Heather Barr also placed well as Whitman's fourth runner, finishing 18th in 19:25.
Liz Briggs, who ran as Whitman's second or third finisher for much of the season, slipped to 45th place in 20:13. "Normally, Liz runs right there with Heather Koertje, but Liz looked and felt just awful today," Feezell said. "She felt ill Friday and was having trouble with her breathing. There's a chance she's coming down with the flu."
Feezell said Briggs struggled so badly at times that she nearly pulled her from the race a few times. "Liz is one of her toughest runners, and she gave it everything she had. She feels badly that she wasn't able to run her normal race, but I'm tremendously proud of her in that she was able to finish at all."
Also placing for Whitman were freshman Jeanne Knechtges, who was 56th in 20:51, and Alison Gillespie, who finished in 68th place in 21:34.
Pacific Lutheran's Lia Ossiander won the race in 18:20. One of her teammates, Maree George-Milles was second in 18:29. The two Lute runners also finished one-two in the Northwest Conference championships two weeks ago.
With sunny skies and cool temperatures, weather conditions for the race were perfect, Feezell said. Times for all the runners were slow, however, due to what she called a "deceptively difficult course. There weren't a lot of hills, but there were turns everywhere. Unless you focused constantly, it was easy to lose time in the turns."
There's also a chance that Whitman's runners were affected by the poor air quality in the Los Angeles area, Feezell said. "All of our runners complained about feeling sluggish, and said the air didn't feel right. Pollution and poor air quality can make a difference, especially if you're not used to it."
Freshman Braden Burkholder and senior Lars Tysver had Whitman's best showings Saturday in the NCAA DIII West Region Meet in Chino, Calif. Running in a field of about 100 runners, Burkholder placed 45th in the 8,000-meter race in 28:28. Tysver finished in 64th place in 29:22.
Eli Klovee-Smith of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) won the race in 26:16.8, edging Adam Boardman of Pomona-Pitzer Colleges by less than two seconds. Aaron Young of Willamette took third in 26:21 to give the Northwest Conference its highest individual finish.
CMS won the men's race with 53 place points for its top five runners. The University of Puget Sound was a close second with 58 points, while Willamette was thid with 75 points. Whitman placed 10th in the 13-school field with 314 points.
"I thought Braden a good, competitive race for our men's team," Whitman coach Carol Feezell said. "He stuck with his game plan of starting conservatively and then picking off runners throughout the race. Lars ran an even race, but he wasn't able to finish as strongly as he wanted. It just wasn't his day today."
Jerome Schwartz, a Whitman sophomore, had one of his best races of the season, placing 74th in 29:59. "That was a great race for Jerome," Feezell said. "He really came on strong to finish his season."
Also running for the Missionaries were Joel Byersdorfer, 79th, 30:21; Ryan Gold, 84th, 30:25; and freshman Kirk Blais, 92nd, 31:55. Blais had been slowed in recent weeks by a hamstring injury.
Whitman's Jennie Wood capped her senior year by placing 72nd in a crowded field of 211 runners at the NCAA Division III national cross country championships Saturday at the Windemere Golf Course in Spokane. Wash. Wood, the first Missionary runner ever to compete in the NCAA championships, finished the 5,000-meter course in 19:07.6.
Wood, who placed fourth in the Northwest Conference (NWC) championships in late October, had the third-best NWC time in Saturday's race. Pacific Lutheran's Lia Ossiander, the conference champion, placed 9th Saturday in 18:19.6. One of her teammates, Maree George-Milles placed 37th in 18:46.
"It was a great race for Jennie, and a great end to her season," Whitman coach Carol Feezell said. "She had fun and was excited to be part of it all. It wasn't a great time for her, but it was very cold out there. She also got caught up in the crowd of runners at the start of the race."
Johanna Olson of Luther College won the race and the national title in a time of 17:54.6, finishing more than 16 seconds ahead of her nearest competitor. Middlebury College won the women's team title with a score of 103 place points for its top five runners. Williams College was second with 123 points. A total of 24 schools had entire teams competing.
Willamette, this year's NWC champion, qualified its full team for nationals by winning the West Region title a week ago in China, Calif. Willamette placed 22nd as a team in Saturday's national championship with 483 team points. Its top runner was Lisa Starkey, who placed 106th in a time of 19:24.9.
Whitman's Wood placed seventh in last week's regional meet. She qualified for nationals because she was one of the top six runners not on Willamette's first-place team.
Because Saturday's race included such a large field, there was little distance between many of the women as they finished. Wood was just one second behind the four women who finished immediately ahead of her. The runner who placed 52nd beat Wood by less than eight seconds.
"Jennie had such an amazing senior season," Feezell said. "This was a good end to her season."