News Release Date:
Saturday, November 1
WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- With Maddie Coffman and Jena Winger placing first and second, the Willamette University women ran away to their seventh consecutive Northwest Conference cross country championship Saturday afternoon at Veterans Memorial Golf Course in Walla Walla.
Whitman College, the host team, got all-conference performances from Kristen Ballinger (6th), Sara McCune (10th) and Yasmeen Colis (13th) to tie Whitworth University for second place.
Willamette, which also got strong performances from Tina Patel (9th), Molly Lewis (14th) and Edith Polanco (16th), was first in the team scoring with 42 points for its top five finishers.
Whitman and Whitworth tied for the second spot with 77 points. Whitworth's top three were Kathryn Williams (11th), Jo Mayer (12th) and Tonya Turner (15th).
With Hannah Palmer placing fifth and Tamma Carleton taking seventh, Lewis & Clark College finished fourth in the nine-school field with 100 points. Linfield College was fifth with 131 points.
Coffman, the runner-up at last year's championships, won Saturday's 6,000-meter race in 21:31.27, beating Winger by more than five seconds. Marci Klimek, running for Linfield, took third place in 21:40.85, while Pacific University's Kelsey Owens was fourth in 21:53.48.
The University of Puget Sound's Emma Kelsey also made the top 10, placing eighth.
The top seven finishers earn spots on the All-NWC First Team. Runners in spots eight through 14 receive All-NWC Second-Team honors.
Next up for the NWC runners is the NCAA Div. III West Regional, slated
for Saturday, Nov. 15, at Bush Pasture Park in Salem, Ore. Willamette
will be the host.
Women's Results
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CONTACT: Dave Holden