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Press releases written by GNAC information director, Bob Guptill.
Women's Press Release...
SPU, Pixler Win West Regional Titles
Seattle Pacific sophomore Jessica Pixler successfully defended her individual title leading the Falcons to their first women's team title in more than a decade Saturday in the NCAA Division II West Regional Cross Country championships.
Pixler, who won last year's championship in a time of 20:46.1 and then went on to place 10 th in the national meet, covered the 6,000 meter Eagle Island State Park layout in a time of 19:52.9, finishing 33 seconds ahead of her teammate Jane Larson, who placed second in a time of 20:26.0. Sarah Montez of Chico State placed third in a time of 20:27.0.
Seattle Pacific placed three athletes in the top six and four in the Top 15 and outpointed defending champ Cal State L.A. 45-54 to win the team title, its first since edge UC Davis 56-59 for the 1996 crown.
Chico State finished third with 64 points and UC San Diego placed fourth with 125. All four teams advance to the NCAA national championships Saturday, Nov. 17 at Joplin, Mo.
Also qualifying for the national meet as individuals were Ashley Puga of Northwest Nazarene, who finished fourth in a time of 20:35.5 and Sarah Porter of Western Washington who placed 13th in a time of 21:15.9. Karla Alburez of Cal State L.A., who won the CCAA title two weeks ago, finished fifth in a time of 20:44.8.
Seattle Pacific is the first Great Northwest Athletic Conference team to win the regional title since Central Washington won in 2000. Pixler's time is also the only sub 20 minute time in the regional championships in at least the last 10 years.
The top 15 finishers are awarded all-region honors. SPU and Cal State L.A. each grabbed four all-region berths, while Chico placed three in the Top 15. Cal State Stanislaus, UC San Diego, Northwest Nazarene and Western Washington had one each.
Women's Team Scores - Seattle Pacific 45, Cal State L.A. 54, Chico State 64, UC San Diego 125, Northwest Nazarene 231, Seattle 251, Cal Poly Pomona 260, Western Oregon 260, Central Washington 275, Western Washington 278, Alaska Anchorage 297, Cal State Stanislaus 302, Saint Martin's 347, San Francisco State 356, Cal State San Bernardino 370, Montana State Billings 374, BYU-Hawaii 409, Humboldt State 441, Alaska Fairbanks 441, Hawaii Pacific 486, Hawaii Hilo 514, Sonoma State 671, Chaminade 699. All-Region (6,000 Meters) - 1. Jessica Pixler, SPU, 19:52.9; 2. Jane Larson, SPU, 20:26.0; 3. Sarah Montez, Chico State, 20:27.0; 4. Ashley Puga, NNU, 20:35.5; 5. Karla Alburez, CSLA, 20:44.8; 6. Suzie Strickler, SPU, 21:02.2; 7. Diane Dunn, UCSD, 21:03.8; 8. Liliana Hernandez, CSLA, 21:04.4; 9, Lindsay Nelson, Chico State, 21:04.7; 10. Maribel Cespedes, CSLA, 21:06.7; 11. Shawna Burger, CSLA, 21:07.5; 12. Aisha Kamala, Chico State, 21:14.5; 13. Sarah Porter, WWU, 21:15.9; 14. Cherise McNair, CSUS, 21:17.6; 15. Karin Rohde, SPU, 21:23.5.
Men's Press Release...
Chico State Wins Sixth Straight Men’s West Regional Cross Country Title
EAGLE, Idaho – Chico State placed six runners in the Top 15 and cruised to its sixth consecutive NCAA Division II West Regional men’s cross country team title Saturday.
Tim Tollefson led the Wildcats finishing third in a 10,000 meter time of 30:40.20.
Chico finished with 39 team points finishing well ahead of Great Northwest Athletic Conference champion Western Washington, which finished second with 93 points. UC San Diego edged Western Oregon 135-140 for third place.
Chico State, Western Washington and UC San Diego all qualified for the NCAA Division II national meet Saturday, Nov. 17 at Joplin, Mo.
John Riak of Saint Martin’s won the region’s individual title covering the 10,000-meter layout at Eagle Island State Park in a time of 30:32.75. Two weeks ago Riak won the GNAC title.
Riak was one of three GNAC athletes to qualify for the national meet as individuals. Sam Scotchmer of Central Washington, who placed second in a time of 30:35.40, and David Kiplagat of Alaska Anchorage, who placed fourth in a time of 30:44.78, also secured national berths.
Chico, which has had an averaging winning margin of 58 points during its six-year title run, dominated the all-region team with six selections. Also earning regional berths from Chico State with Top 15 finishes in addition to Tollefson were Brendan Scanlon (8th), Michael Wickman (10th), Manny Mejia (11th), Jordan Page (12th) and Angel Marquez (15th).
Only one other school – Cal State Stanislaus- had more than one runner in the Top 15. The Warriors’ Vincente Moreno, who won the CCAA individual title two weeks ago, placed sixth in a time of 30:50.20. CSUS’ Bobby Olivera placed 14th.
Saint Martin’s, Central Washington, Alaska Anchorage, Western Washington, Humboldt State, Western Oregon and Brigham Young-Hawaii all placed one runner in the Top 15.
Team Scores – Chico State 39, Western Washington 93, UC San Diego 135, Western Oregon 140, Alaska Anchorage 152, Cal State Stanislaus 172, Humboldt State 181, Central Washington 228, BYU-Hawaii 275, San Francisco State 284, Northwest Nazarene 290, Hawaii Pacific 301, Cal Poly Pomona 315, Seattle 330, Hawaii Hilo 383, Alaska Fairbanks 392, Montana State Billings 510, Chaminade 552, Grand Canyon 557.
All-Region (10,000 Meters) – 1. John Riak, SMU, 30:32.75; 2. Sam Scotchmer, CWU, 30:35.40; 3. Tim Tollefson, Chico State, 30:40.20; 4. David Kiplagat, UAA, 30:44.78; 5. Bennett Grimes, WWU, 30:48.02; 6. Vincente Moreno, CSUS, 30:50.20; 7. Jasper Peach, HSU, 30:55.40; 8. Brendan Scanlon, Chico State, 30:57.46; 9. Mike Schmidt, WOU, 30:59.71; 10. Michael Wickman, Chico State, 31:01.37; 11. Manny Mejia, Chico State, 31:02.79; 12. Jordan Page, Chico State, 31:03.52; 13. Kenneth Harper, BYU-Hawaii, 31:04.49; 14. Bobby Olivera, CSU Stanislaus, 31:06.31; 15. Angel Marquez, Chico State, 31:12.82
Additional Links:
Boise Convention and Visitors Bureau
Bob Firman Race Website - Additional Course pictures and information
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