News Release Date:
Tuesday, August 25

WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- The Whitman College women's cross country team, which returns its top eight runners from a year ago, is ranked first in a preseason poll for the West Region of NCAA Division III.

Malcolm Dunn

The U.S. Collegiate Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association released its regional preseason polls Tuesday. In the men's poll, Whitman is ranked 10th among West Region schools.

Kristen Ballinger

"Obviously it's exciting to be ranked as the top women's team in the West Region," Whitman coach Malcolm Dunn said.  "We have a great group of returning athletes, and  we're adding a few first-year women to the mix who could challenge for spots in our top five.

"The rest of the top three or four teams in the region will be extremely tough, though, and we'll have to run at a  very high level to maintain that ranking throughout the season," he added.

"I expect we will continue to have some very close competitions with Whitworth and Willamette in our conference, and the top schools in the SCIAC (Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Association) when we get to the West Region championships." 

Led by Kristen Ballinger, the Whitman women tied for second at last November's Northwest Conference championships and then placed fourth at the regional championships.

As a team, Whitman just missed qualifying for the national championships, but Ballinger advanced as an individual, placing 107th in a field of 279 runners at the national finals.

Ballinger, now a junior, and three of her teammates -- seniors Yasmeen Colis, Michela Corcorran and Sara McCune -- earned all-region honors last fall.

Matthew Kelly

Rounding out Whitman's top eight at the 2008 conference championships were Heather O'Moore, Sara Levy, Emily Rodriguez and Jennifer Farley. O'Moore and Rodriguez are running their senior seasons this fall while Levy and Farley are second-year runners.

"On the men's side, we're adding a couple talented first-years, and our returning athletes are in great shape from some quality training over the summer," Dunn said. "We're looking forward to seeing how strong we can be as a  team."

The men's team returns six of its top eight runners from a squad that placed sixth -- just four points out of fifth place -- at last year's NWC championships. Team leader Matthew Kelly then paced Whitman to an 11th-place showing at regionals, where he earned all-region individual honors.

Other top-eight runners returning for the Whitman men are seniors Curtis Reid and Terrence Reid and juniors Sam Hennessey, Daniel Luecke and John Callow. 

The Whitman teams open their seasons on Saturday, Sept. 5, when they host the annual Whitman Invitational at Ft. Walla Walla Park.

Dunn is starting his fifth season as Whitman's head cross country coach.

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CONTACT: Dave Holden
Sports Information Director
Whitman College, Walla Walla, Wash.
holden@whitman.edu; (509) 527-5902