Sophomores Yasmeen Colis, Sara McCune and Michela Corcorran for the women and senior Brian Woods for the men earned all-region honors as the Whitman cross country ran in Saturday's NCAA Div. III West Region Championships at McIver State Park in Estacada, Ore.
Sparked by a strong showing from its top three, the Missionary women's team placed fourth in a field of 16 teams. Whitman, one of only two teams to put three runners in the top 20, totaled 133 place points for its top five finishers.
Colorado College edged Whitman for third place, scoring 121 points. As expected, Willamette dominated the women's race with 43 points while Puget Sound took second with 86 points. Willamette swept the top two individual spots and put five runners in the top 20.
The Whitman men's squad, slowed in recent weeks by a number of nagging injuries and bouts with illness, placed 11th in the team scoring with 269 points. Willamette also took first on the men's side with 50 place points. Occidental was second with 72 points, followed by Colorado with 86 and Linfield with 101.
The top two teams in both of Saturday's races gain automatic bids to the NCAA National Championships, slated for next Saturday in Northfield, Minn. One and possibly two women's teams from the West Region might also get at-large bids to nationals, Whitman coach Malcolm Dunn said. "We still have an outside shot at sending our women's team to nationals, but we won't know until Sunday," he said.
Colis paced the Whitman women, finishing 15th on the 6,000-meter course in 22:51.80. McCune and Corcorran were right behind, placing 16th and 17th, respectively, in near identical times of 22:54.55 and 22:54.65. "Sara and Michela were side by side as they crossed the finish line," Dunn said. "Officials had to look at the video tape to sort out which one finished ahead of the other."
Whitman's big three finished in the same order at last year's regional race, placing 19th, 21st and 28th to gain all-region honors in their first college season.
In the men's race Saturday, Woods closed out his running career in fine style by placing 28th in 26:20.65 for the 8,000 meters. Woods finished 50th at last fall's regional race.
"We're excited most today by how well our top three women ran," Dunn said. "They ran as a pack the whole way and had a great race. They performed admirably."
The top seven individuals not on national qualifying teams will also advance to the national championships. If Colorado, by virtue of its third-place showing on Saturday, gets an at-large berth but Whitman doesn't as the fourth-place team, Colis, McCune and Corcorran will be the first three alternates for the additional individual berths at nationals.
"Our women's team couldn't have run much better than it did today," Dunn said. "Most of the team returns, and if recruiting goes well for next season, we should make it onto the national stage soon."
Sophomore Amy Chapman, who placed 44th Saturday in 23:48.35, and senior Lisa Taylor, who was 59th in 24:04.80, rounded out Whitman's team score. Also running were sophomore Emily Rodriguez, who was 76th in 24:39.10, and first-year competitor Chelsea Momany, who was 86th in 25:04.95.
Sophomore Matthew Kelly ran second for the Whitman men on Saturday, finishing 52nd in 27:04.30. He was 81st a year ago as a freshman.
Rounding out the Missionary team score were senior Tim Marrinan, 58th, 27:12.05; junior Ian Bell, 66th, 27:31.70; and junior Nick Littman, 72nd, 27:47.25. Marrinan moved up 17 spots from his finish at last year's regional race. Bell, who didn't run last fall while studying off campus, placed 90th two years ago at regionals.
Senior Eli Asch and freshman Daniel Luecke also ran Saturday for Whitman, placing 75th and 88th, respectively, with times of 28:03.75 and 28:47.15. Asch last ran at regionals two years ago, finishing 91st.
Placing three runners in the top 12 and five in the first 16, the Whitman women's cross country team ran a strong second at the annual season-opening Whitman Invitational Saturday morning at Fort Walla Walla Park.
Sophomores Sara McCune and Yasmeen Colis led the way for the Missionaries, placing fourth and seventh, respectively, with times of 15:40.92 and 15:58.84 for the 4,000-meter course. Lewis-Clark State, a nationally-ranked NAIA school, was first in the women's team scoring with 27 place points. Whitman was second with 46 points, beating two Northwest Conference rivals, Whitworth (66) and George Fox (91).
In the men's 6,000 meters, freshman Sam Hennessey finished 10th in 20:24.88 to pace Whitman. Juniors Sam Bell and Brian Woods were 15th and 20th, respectively, in times of 20:32.99 and 20:49.97. The Missionary men were fourth in the team scoring, trailing Lewis-Clark State (22), Whitworth (49) and George Fox (74) but beating Clackamas Community College (130).
"Both the women's and men's teams at Lewis-Clark State are nationally ranked, so to see the Whitman women finish a relatively close second was encouraging," Whitman coach Malcolm Dunn said. "Our women also beat Whitworth and George Fox pretty soundly, and we lost to those teams at the conference championships last year. Our first five runners all finished ahead of the third runner for both Whitworth and George Fox."
McCune, who had the day's best time among the NWC women, ran a "very smart race," Dunn said. "She didn't start too quickly, and then she worked off Lewis-Clark State's top two runners for most of the race. Sara lost third place to a Clackamas Community College runner at the very end, but she's starting her sophomore season in much shape than a year ago."
Colis was a "little disappointed" in her race, Dunn said, but "once she gets a few more races under her belt, she's going to be fine."
Michela Corcorran, another sophomore, ran third for Whitman, placing 12th overall in 16:18.14. "She was running today on tired legs, but she's going to get stronger as well over the next few weeks."
Sophomore Emily Rodriguez and senior captain Lisa Taylor rounded out Whitman's team score. Rodriguez finished 15th in 16:23.64, just ahead of Taylor and her 16:24.87 time. "It was great to see Emily break into our top five," Dunn said. "She was a good runner last year, but she worked so hard over the winter, spring and summer months. Both Emily and Lisa are much stronger runners than they were a year ago."
Dunn was just as pleased with his men's squad. "We're still a very young team on the men's side, so that was a good showing for us today," he said. "We're only going to get better as the season goes along."
Hennessey, who had the fourth-best time among the NWC men, had a "great race," Dunn said. "He started in a good spot and steadily ran his race. He's a strong runner, and it will benefit him when we go to the standard 8,000-meter races."
Bell, who missed his sophomore season while studying off campus, ran "right in the middle of a large pack of conference runners," Dunn said. "It was good to Ian in there competing."
Woods, a senior captain and Whitman's top runner at the conference meet in each of the past two seasons, was "only about 25 seconds behind our best runner today," Dunn said. "Brian is one of those runners who gets stronger and faster with each week of the season."
Sophomore Matthew Kelly and freshman Daniel Luecke ran fourth and fifth for Whitman to round out the team score. Kelly was 26th in 21:16.60, one spot in front of Luecke and his 21:17.25 clocking. "Both of those guys had a strong finish," Dunn said.
Tim Marrinan, another senior captain, and freshman Colin Livingston were not far behind. Marrinan was 30th in 21:22.88 and Livingston 33rd in 21:29.46. "Tim moved up throughout the race, and he's another runner who will get stronger," Dunn said. "Colin had an off day, but he will definitely finish higher as he gets a few more weeks of college running under his belt."
Nick Littman, a Whitman junior still bouncing back from a summer injury, finished 37th in 21:51.25. "It's going to be a few more weeks before Nick will be back running the way he can," Dunn said.
Next in line for the Missionaries were sophomore Curtis Reid, 43rd, 22:14.85; freshman John Callow, 44th, 22:19.18; and freshman Terrence Reid, 49th, 22:44.03. "Like Nick, Curtis and John need a few more weeks before they'll be really ready to run," Dunn said. "It'll be interesting also to see what more training will do for Terrence."
Others running for Whitman were junior Marty Skeels, 53rd, 23:22.92; senior Robert Marcotte, 57th, 24:24.26; freshman Arnaud Sillis, 61st, 27:15.79; and freshman Sam Nortz, 62nd, 29:14.61.
In the women's race, first-year runners Lydia Ngai and Chelsea Momany had the sixth- and seventh-best times for Whitman. Ngai was 28th overall in 16:48.21 while Momany was 29th in 16:51.49. "Both Lydia and Chelsea will benefit when he go to the standard 6,000 meters for the women's races," Dunn said. "They were only about 20 seconds out of our top five."
Sophomores Heather O'Moore (32nd, 17:01.94) and Amy Chapman (34th, 17:08.61), along with first-year runner Janna Rozar (37th, 17:12.62), filled out Whitman's top 10. "Heather and Amy should get stronger, and I think Janna has a good upside as well," Dunn said.
Also running for the Whitman women were two first-year runners Kayla Chory (41st, 17:38.07) and Natalie Fowler (49th, 18:38.43), and first-year senior Rachel Carroll (51st, 20:08.78).
Whitman returns to action next Saturday at the Lewis & Clark Invitational at McIver Park near Estacade, Ore.
With sophomore Sara McCune and senior Brian Woods leading the way, the Whitman cross country teams turned in a pair of strong performances at Saturday's Lewis & Clark Invitational, placing first in the women's team scoring and third on the men's side.
Despite losing one of its top two runners part way through the women's 6,000 meters, Whitman took first in convincing fashion with 57 place points for its top five finishers. Corban College was second with 78 points, followed by Pacific Lutheran 85, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) 87, Lewis & Clark 88, UC-Santa Cruz 119, Concordia-Portland 184, Oregon Tech 216, and Linfield 265.
"According to the meet director, this is the first time the Whitman women have won this event since it was started in 1990," Whitman coach Malcolm Dunn said. "Our women's team also eased its way into the NCAA Div. III national rankings this past week, and I think it's safe to say our performance today will keep us there."
Running at McIver State Park near Estacada, Ore., McCune finished in the fifth spot individually with a time of 23:20. Sophomore Michela Corcorran was close behind with a seventh-place time of 23:33. Filling out the Missionary team score were sophomore Emily Rodriguez (14th, 24:06), first-year runner Chelsea Momany (16th, 24:11) and senior Lisa Taylor (17th, 24:14).
Whitman sophomore Yasmeen Colis was running with McCune when she dropped from the race at the two-mile mark with a sore foot. "Had Yasmeen run her normal race, that probably would have opened another 14 or 15 points between us and the runner-up in the team scoring," Dunn said.
In the men's 8,000 meters, Whitman took third in the team scoring with 75 points, just four points behind second-place Linfield. The CMS placed seven runners in the top 15 and dominated the team scoring with 29 points. Other team scores were Corban 89, Lewis & Clark 123, Pacific Lutheran 140, Warner Pacific 175, and Cascade 226.
Woods paced the Missionary men with a 10th-place time of 26:47. Freshman Sam Hennessey was next in line, placing 14th in 27:00. Contributing to the team score were sophomore Matthew Kelly (20th, 27:19), junior Ian Bell (25th, 27:30) and freshman Daniel Luecke (31st, 27:39).
"I'm very pleased with our men's team scoring," Dunn said. "It shows how much stronger we are in terms of depth. It was great to see Brian show some improvement from last week, and to see Sam hold his own in his first college race at 8,000 meters. Having two freshmen, Sam and Daniel, in our top five has given us a definite boost."
Rounding out the top 10 for the Whitman men were senior Tim Marrinan (35th, 27:48), junior Nick Littman (48th, 28:34), freshman Colin Livingston (52nd, 28:43), sophomore Curtis Reid (56th, 28:59) and senior Eli Asch (57th, 29:12).
Also running for Whitman were freshman John Callow 60th, sophomore Terrence Reid 65th, senior Robert Marcotte 74th, Arnaud Sillis 84th, and Sam Nortz 90th.
"We have several runners on our men's team who are going to get stronger over the next few weeks," Dunn said. "Our workouts weren't easy this past week, so we had a lot of guys who were running on tired legs today. It was encouraging to see them run this well early in the season."
Sophomore Heather O'Moore paced Whitman's second five in the women's race, placing 21st in 24:33. First-year runners Lydia Ngai and Janna Rozar were 31st and 34th, respectively, with times of 24:59 and 25:08. Sophomore Amy Chapman was 35th in 25:14 while first-year runner Kayla Chory was 40th in 25:24. Also running for the Missionaries were Natalie Fowler (81st), another first-year competitor, and first-year senior Rachel Carroll (90th).
"Having our top 10 runners finish in the top 40 was an excellent show of depth," Dunn said. "It's good to have most of your runners in the mix, running toward the front of the field."
Whitman takes next weekend off before returning to action at the Wes Cook Bear Fete Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 22, at Willamette Mission State Park near Brooks, Ore.
Two weeks after winning the Lewis & Clark Invitational, the Whitman women's cross country squad added another team victory to its resume at Saturday morning's Wes Cook Bear Fete Invitational at Willamette Mission State Park near Brooks, Ore.
Meanwhile, the Missionary men's team continued to show signs of rounding into shape, placing a strong fourth among six Northwest Conference schools.
With sophomores Yasmeen Colis, Sara McCune and Michela Corcorran all placing in the top 10, the Whitman women finished first in the team scoring with 41 place points for their top five. Lewis & Clark was a distant second with 82 points. Next in line were George Fox 91, Linfield 92, Pacific Lutheran 94, and Willamette 108.
"This was the most dominating performance by our women's team in my three years of coaching at Whitman," coach Malcolm Dunn said. "Our win today is really a testament to the depth of our team and the strength of our first group of runners. Our top seven runners all placed in the top 19 college runners."
Linfield dominated the men's race, placing four runners in the top six and winning the team scoring with 35 points. George Fox was second with 65 points, followed by Willamette with 73 and Whitman with 79. Lewis & Clark with 137 points and Pacific Lutheran with 177 rounded out the field.
"The Willamette teams ran without most of their top runners today, so it's deceptive to look at how close we finished to their men's team," Dunn said. "On the more positive side, our men's team is starting to close the gap a little bit with George Fox. It's encouraging to see our men's team continue to get stronger and faster as we get into the season."
Colis had Whitman's top peformance in the women's 6,000 meters, placing sixth (fifth among college runners) with a time of 22:47.90 -- just two seconds out of fourth place. Lewis & Clark's Amanda Phillips continued to run head and shoulders above her competition, winning the race in 21:46.50.
McCune was next for the Whitman women, placing seventh in 23:02.50. Corcorran was 10th in 23:22.90. Sophomore Emily Rodriguez and senior Lisa Taylor rounded out the Missionary team score, placing 14th and 18th, respectively, with times of 23:39.60 and 23:54.40. Close behind were sophomore Heather O'Moore, who was 19th in 23:57.10, and first-year runner Chelsea Momany, who was 21st in 24:06.10.
"We wanted our women's team as a whole to start the race a little more aggressively, and it seemed to work out well," Dunn said. "We continued to move up throughout the race, but we put ourselves in a better position early in the race."
Whitman showed its depth with its next group of runners, led by sophomore Amy Chapman, who placed 30th in 24:25.70. Next for the Missionaries were three first-year runners -- Janna Rozar (33rd, 25:05.10), Lydia Ngai (35th, 25:12.10) and Kayla Chory (38th, 25:35.60). Also racing were first-year runner Natalie Fowler (54th, 27:06.60) and senior Rachel Carroll (58th, 28:11.50).
Brian Woods, a senior, led the charge for the Whitman men, placing 12th (11th among college runners) in 26:29.40. Allen Wagner, running unattached, won the race in 25:26.10, beating his nearest competitor by 20 seconds.
Freshman Sam Hennessey and sophomore Matthew Kelly ran second and third for Whitman, placing 16th and 17th overall with times of 26:47.80 and 26:50.10.
"We wanted both Brian and Matt to get out more quickly and aggressively to start the race, and they both looked great," Dunn said. "We're used to seeing Brian at the front of our runners, but this was a break-through race for Matt. His training has gone really well the past two weeks and it showed today. With Sam, he continues to show his strength over the 8-kilometer distance. He moved up consistently throughout the race. It's good to see him coming into his own so early in his college career."
Junior Ian Bell, who was 21st in 27:00.00, and senior Tim Marrinan, a few steps back in 22nd place in 27:03.90, completed Whitman's team score. "Both Ian and Tim looked strong," Dunn said. "They ran smart, aggressive races, and they looked comfortable doing it."
Freshman Daniel Luecke, slowed a bit by injury, was 27th in 27:22.80 while junior Nick Littman was 32nd in 27:39.50. "Nick is still coming back from injury, but as I've said all along, we're just waiting for him to get stronger," Dunn said. "He had the confidence today to start a little more quickly, even though he faded a bit over the last two miles. Realistically, Nick is still a few weeks away from his best races."
Freshman Colin Livingston paced Whitman's next group, placing 39th in 28:22.20. Filling the next three spots were senior Eli Asch (28:24.50), sophomore Curtis Reid (28:30.60), and freshman John Callow (28:38.10). "Eli and Curtis are starting to get back into a groove, and it was good to see the two freshmen running in that group," Dunn said.
Others running for Whitman were sophomore Terrence Reid (46th, 29:10.90), senior Robert Marcotte (55th, 30:24.90), freshman Arnaud Sillis (66th, 34:20.20), and freshman Sam Nortz (68th, 37:01.10).
Both Whitman teams take next weekend off before competing again on Saturday, Oct. 6, at the Pacific Lutheran Invitational.
With sophomore Yasmeen Colis taking third and two teammates placing sixth and seventh, the Whitman women's cross country team outran four Northwest Conference (NWC) schools Saturday morning at the Pacific Lutheran Invitational in Tacoma, Wash.
The Missionary women finished second overall in the 6,000-meter race with 54 place points, trailing only Western Oregon University, an NCAA Div. II squad that took top honors with 44 points. Whitworth was third with 65 points, followed by Pacific Lutheran 79, Lewis & Clark 106, and Puget Sound 190.
Meanwhile in the men's 8,000 meters, senior Brian Woods placed ninth as the Whitman men finished fourth in a six-school field that was also topped by Western Oregon.
"Overall, the women's team looked very strong," Whitman coach Malcolm Dunn said. "It was encouraging to beat the Whitworth women at 6,000 meters. Puget Sound did not have its top runners at this meet, but the results still show that we're one of the top three or four teams in the conference. We could finish as high as second at the conference championships late this month."
The Missionary men's squad also continued to show signs of definite improvement, Dunn said. "This was a very good showing for the men. It was great to see them put together eight kilometers of strong, focused running."
Colis was clocked in a season-best 22:32.20 in placing third in the women's event. Amanda Phillips, a Lewis & Clark senior, won the race in 21:27.39, and Bailey Schutte, running unattached, was the runner-up in 22:32.20. Two more Whitman sophomores, Sara McCune and Michela Corcorran, ran sixth and seventh, respectively, in times of 22:40.75 and 22:41.13.
"Yasmeen, Sara and Michela ran together for much of the race," Dunn said. "Yasmeen was the stronger runner today, and it was good to see her help pull the other two along."
Emily Rodriguez, a fourth Whitman sophomore, had the fourth-best Missionary time, finishing 17th in 23:29.99. "Emily went out a little too quickly, but she eventually got her second wind and had a great finish," Dunn said. "She passed a number of runners in the last 80 meters."
Amy Chapman made it an all-sophomore top five for Whitman, placing 27th in 23:33.80 as she led a string of three teammates to the finish line. Filling the next three spots were sophomore Heather O'Moore (23:34.26), first-year runner Chelsea Momany (23:39.86), and senior Lisa Taylor (23:42.47).
"This pack ran really, really well together, and Janna Rozar wasn't too far behind either," Dunn said. "Ideally, we'd like to see this pack stay together and move up another 10 to 15 seconds in the future. That would really help our team score."
Rozar, who was 34th in 23:57.10, was followed by three more first-year runners: Lydia Ngai, 40th, 24:39.72; Kayla Chory, 47th, 25:29.47; and Natalie Fowler, 55th, 26:30.39. Rachel Carroll, a senior running her first year of cross country, was 64th in 27:37.07 -- 80 seconds faster than her first 6,000-meter race earlier in the fall.
Western Oregon dominated the men's race, placing five runners in the top 10 to finish first in the team scoring with 30 points. Whitworth was second with 47 points and Puget Sound third with 69. Whitman was fourth with 94 points, beating both Lewis & Clark's 129 points and Pacific Lutheran's 172.
In pacing the Whitman men and placing ninth overall, Woods had the fifth-best time (25:57.84) among the NWC runners. Whitworth's Nick Gallagher won the race in 25:08.81, beating Western Oregon's Braxton Jackson by almost seven seconds.
"This is the first time Brian has run under 26 minutes this season," Dunn said. "This is a relatively fast course, but the footing was on the slow side. Brian's time is a good sign for him."
Matthew Kelly, a Whitman sophomore, placed 16th in 26:25.26, and senior teammate Tim Marrinan was close behind in 18th with a time of 26:28.81. "Matt ran a very smart, aggressive race, but Tim probably had our best race today. Tim started conservatively, as he normally does, but then he was passing people throughout the race. It's encouraging to see him come on so strongly."
Rounding out Whitman's top five and team score were junior Ian Bell, who was 23rd in 26:50.74, and freshman Daniel Luecke, who was 28th in 26:56.77.
Freshman Sam Hennessey and junior Nick Littman led Whitman's second contingent, placing 31st and 36th, respectively, in 27:01.70 and 27:15.19. "This was a little bit of an off day for Sam," Dunn said. "He's been fighting off a cold. Nick had the flu earlier in the week, so it was great to see him bounce back and take another step toward his form from the end of last season."
Next in line for the Missionaries were sophomore Curtis Reid, 43rd, 27:33.97; freshman Colin Livingston, 48th, 27:46.17; freshman John Callow, 50th, 28:00.77; and senior Eli Asch, 52nd, 28:05.56. "Curtis also had a great race," Dunn said. "He had our best finish today, men or women, over the last two kilometers. He was absolutely flying over the last 200 meters."
Others running for the Whitman men were sophomore Terrence Reid, 55th, 28:33.52; senior Robert Marcotte, 61st, 29:38.29; and freshman Sam Nortz, 71st, 35:59.65. Nortz has trimmed his 8,000-meter time by about two minutes from earlier in the season.
Whitman travels to Spokane, Wash., next Saturday for the Bigfoot Open at Spokane Falls Community College.
Winning for the third time in its last four meets, the Whitman women's cross country team parlayed its talented depth into victory Saturday morning in a 5,000-meter race at the Big Foot Open in Spokane, Wash.
With six runners finishing in the top 20, the Missionary women took first in the eight-team field with 49 points, scoring clear-cut victories over its nearest competitors, NCAA Div. II Lewis-Clark State (65 points) and Northwest Conference rival Whitworth (72 points).
"Lewis-Clark State runners finished first and second, but our depth as a team is much stronger," Whitman coach Malcolm Dunn said. "Our depth is what gave us the team victory, and it's always good to get another trophy for the office."
Meanwhile in the men's 8,000 meters, Whitman finished fourth in a seven-team field. The Community Colleges of Spokane dominated the men's race with 21 points, beating second-place Lewis-Clark State (48) and third-place Whitworth (68). With 126 points, the Missionary men beat Carroll College (156), Big Foot (168) and the University of Great Falls (195). Big Foot is a non-college club team.
Sophomores Yasmeen Colis and Sara McCune paced the Whitman women's squad, placing third and fourth overall. Both runners were timed in 18:33, although Colis edged McCune by a fraction of a second at the finish. They finished just three seconds out of the runner-up spot and just five seconds behind the winner, Lewis-Clark State's Jenny Jensen.
Sophomores Michela Corcorran and Amy Chapman finished 11th and 13th, respectively, for the Missionaries with times of 19:03 and 19:06. Chelsea Momany, a first-year runner from the Spokane area, rounded out Whitman's team scoring, placing 18th in 19:17.
"Yasmeen and Sara had good races and ran stride for stride the whole way," Whitman coach Malcolm Dunn said. "Michela, who was tired from training this past week, didn't have her best race, but she's a strong runner and we're not the least bit worried about her. She'll bounce back for the conference championships in two weeks."
"Amy Chapman probably had our best race of the day," Dunn added. "She ran well last week, and she showed again today that she's continuing to get stronger. Chelsea also had her best team finish of the season."
The next four Missionary finishers underscored Whitman's team strength. Senior Lisa Taylor, who was 20th in 19:19, was followed by sophomores Heather O'Moore (25th, 19:26) and Emily Rodriguez (31st, 19:42), and first-year runner Janna Rozar (35th, 19:55). "That was a good race for Janna, who is closing the gap with our second group of runners," Dunn said.
Rodriguez, normally one of Whitman's top five, wasn't feeling well prior to the race, Dunn said. "That just shows the importance of having a deep squad. If anyone falters or has a bad race, you have others who can step up and contribute to the team score."
Others competing for the Whitman women were first-year runners Lydia Ngai (48th, 20:43), Kayla Chory (54th, 21:02) and Natalie Fowler (63rd, 22:27), and first-year senior Rachel Carroll (68th, 23:59).
In the men's race, senior Brian Woods paced the Missionaries, placing 14th overall in 26:42. Tim Marrinan, also a senior, was next for Whitman, finishing 25th in 27:17. "Brian had a good race," Dunn said. "He went out a little more aggressively than he has in the past, but he had enough left for a strong finish. Tim also started more aggressively and it paid off for him."
Matt Kelly, a Whitman sophomore, was just eight seconds back of Marrinan, placing 28th in 27:25. "Tim and Matt worked well together over the later stages of the races," Dunn said.
Ian Bell, a junior, was next in line for the Missionaries, placing 33rd in 27:37. "Ian had a pretty good race, but he got caught in no-man's land a couple of times," Dunn said. "It's always harder to run a challenging course like this one when you're running by yourself."
Freshman Daniel Luecke, Whitman's fifth and final contributor to the team score, placed 40th in 28:01. He finished at the front of a Missionary pack that also included freshman Sam Hennessey (42nd, 28:05), junior Nick Littman (43rd, 28:07) and sophomore Curtis Reid (47th, 28:11). "That group ran really well together, and it's encouraging to see Curtis continue to get stronger," Dunn said.
Also running for Whitman were freshman Colin Livingston (50th, 28:28), senior Eli Asch (51sth, 28:51), sophomore Terrence Reid (58th, 29:11), freshman John Callow (61st, 29:13), senior Robert Marcotte (69th, 30:19) and freshman Sam Nortz (81st, 37:44). "It was good to see Eli have a better race," Dunn said. "He's been working through some knee issues, but his training went well this past week."
Other than a 3,000-meter team time trial next Saturday, Whitman is done with racing until it heads to NWC Championships on Saturday, Oct. 28.
Brian Woods and Michela Corcorran placed 16th in their respective races to pace the Whitman cross country teams in Saturday's Northwest Conference Cross Country Championships at Willamette Mission State Park in Brooks, Ore.
Despite a bad start, the young Whitman women's team moved up two spots from a year ago, finishing fourth with 131 place points for its top five runners. The Missionaries finished just 10 points behind third-place Lewis & Clark, a team they had beaten three times during the regular season.
Competing in a men's field that was noticeably stronger than a year ago, the Whitman men's team finished sixth for a second straight year. The Missionary men totaled 153 points, trailing fifth-place George Fox by 27 points.
Willamette dominated both of Saturday's races, rolling to its seventh straight men's title and sixth consecutive women's crown.
Willamette swept the top three individual places in the men's 8,000 meters, led by Tristan Knutson-Lombardo's winning time of 25:00.34. With six runners in the top 10, the Bearcats won the team scoring with 21 points. Linfield was second with 70 points, followed by Whitworth 83, Puget Sound 85, George Fox 126, Whitman 153, Lewis & Clark 183, Pacific Lutheran 251, and Pacific 272.
Willamette's Sarah Zerzan won the women's 6,000 meters in 20:36.01, taking top honors for a second straight year. Teammate Maddie Coffman was second in 21:05.80. The Bearcat women were first in the team scoring with 39 points. Puget Sound was second with 58 points. After Lewis & Clark and Whitman, next in line were Whitworth and Pacific Luthera (tied for fifth with 140 points each), Linfield 143, George Fox 184, and Pacific 222.
Woods, a Whitman senior, moved up four spots from last year's championship race, finishing 16th in 26:01.00. That was a 28-second improvement from his time on the same course earlier this year. "Brian ran a good, strong race," Whitman coach Malcolm Dunn said. "He missed all-conference honors by just a few places."
Corcorran, a Missionary sophomore, also moved up four spots from a year ago to place 16th in 22:39.30. Her time was almost 16 seconds slower than her performance on the same course last month. "As a team, we ended up in a bad spot on the starting line, which disadvantaged us enormously," Dunn said. "We didn't get out very aggressively, and everyone in our group was in the back third of the field after 400 meters. The course is so tight in many stretches that it took real effort to get where we normally would have been."
By the end of the race, Dunn said, "many of our runners finished five to 10 spots further back than where they've been running all season. It's a testament to our team that we were able to salvage fourth place after we got off to such a bad start."
Yasmeen Colis, also a sophomore, finished right behind Corcorran in 17th place with a time of 22:42.57. Sara McCune, a third Missionary sophomore, was 21st in 23:02.96, despite tweaking a knee at one point in the race. "Michela had a great race for us," Dunn said. "She ran with Yasmeen and McCune the whole way and then was able to finish strong."
Sophomore Amy Chapman continued her late-season surge, placing 40th for Whitman in 23:37.13, beating her time on the same course earlier this year by about 49 seconds. Chelsea Momany, a first-year runner, rounded out Whitman's team score, placing 43rd in 23:42.97, dropping her time by about 23 seconds.
Others racing for Whitman were senior Lisa Taylor (48th, 23:48.90), sophomore Emily Rodriguez (52nd, 24:10.34), sophomore Heather O'Moore (53rd, 24:13.06), first-year Lydia Ngai (63rd, 25:17.35), and first-year Janna Rozar (64th, 25:21.33).
Tim Marrinan, a senior, ran second for Whitman in the men's race, finishing 34th overall in 26:53.00. Marrinan placed 41st at last year's championships. "Tim probably started too quickly, but he had a good race," Dunn said.
Rounding out Whitman's top five were sophomore Matthew Kelly (37th, 27:07.55), junior Nick Littman (42nd, 27:20.88), and junior Ian Bell (43rd, 27:25.50). "Nick continued his season-long improvement," Dunn said. "He's getting back to where he was at the end of last season."
Senior Eli Asch ran a strong sixth for Whitman, placing 46th in 27:33.66. That ranks as his best finish and best time in four trips to the conference meet. "Our race of the day goes to Eli," Dunn said. "He really showed his senior spirit today."
Others running for Whitman were freshman Daniel Luecke (52nd, 28:00.37), freshman John Callow (54th, 28:15.72), sophomore Terrence Reid (56th, 28:24.01), and freshman Sam Hennessey (62nd, 28:55.27). Reid, a sophomore in his first season of cross country, was a last-minute replacement for sophomore Curtis Reid, who developed a tender Achilles tendon prior to the race.
"It was too bad for Curtis, but the Achilles is something you want to be very careful with," Dunn said. "Terrence deserves a lot of credit for stepping in at the last minute and running his best race of the season. That was good to see."
"Our three freshmen didn't have the best of days," Dunn said. "They've been sick this week. It's hard enough running 8,000 meters without being sick as well."
Next on tap for the Whitman cross country teams is the NCAA Div. III West Regionals, slated for Saturday, Nov. 10, at McIver State Park near Estacada, Ore.