YAKIMA, Wash. – The Western Washington University men's and women's cross country teams opened the 2019 season on Saturday with both placing 2nd at the CWU Invitational at Apple Ridge Run.
The Viking women, ranked 17th nationally and No. 5 in the West Region, scored 42 points with three finishing in the top 10 and all five scoring runners in the top 15. Trinity Western had the lowest team score among the six competing colleges with 27 points, including a 1-2 finish.
Junior Jane Barr (Seattle, WA/Roosevelt) led the Viking with a 3rd-place finish clocking a time of 15:14.68 on the 4K course. Junior Tovah Swartz-Ireland (Seattle, WA/Nathan Hale) was 4th in 15:23.26 and sophomore Rebecca Lehman (Spokane Valley, WA/University) 5th in 15:28.63.
The WWU men also placed 2nd, trailing only conference rival Simon Fraser. The No. 24 nationally-ranked Vikings finished with a team score of 46, with No. 13 SFU taking home top team honors with 29 points. Western had all five scoring competitors in the top 15.
Sophomore Macauley Franks (Lake Forest Park, WA/Shorecrest) led the way for WWU placing 5thon the 6K course in 19:26.39. Redshirt freshman Alec Ritter (Enumclaw, WA) was 6th in 19:27.45 and junior Eric Hamel (Enumclaw, WA) placed 12th in 19:37.64 (10th for points purposes).
WWU returns to action next Saturday (Sept. 21) at the Emerald City Open at Seattle's Lower Woodland Park. The annual WWU Classic will close out the regular-season portion of the schedule on October 12 at Sudden Valley Golf Course in Bellingham. The complete 2019 season schedule can be viewed online at WWUVikings.com/XC.
2019 WWU CROSS COUNTRY SCHEDULE
The 2019 WWU cross country schedule features five regular-season meets, followed by the GNAC Championships, NCAA II West Regional and the NCAA II Championships. Start times for all meets will be posted online at WWUVikings.com/XC when they are finalized. For the 2019 season, the women will race first and the men second at each meet.
|
Date
|
Meet
|
Location
|
|
Sept. 14 (Sat.)
|
Central Washington Invitational
|
Yakima, WA (Apple Ridge)
|
|
Sept. 21 (Sat.)
|
Emerald City Open
|
Seattle, WA (Lower Woodland Park)
|
|
Sept. 28 (Sat.)
|
Ken Garland Classic
|
Lacey, WA (SMU Campus)
|
|
Sept. 28 (Sat.)
|
Roy Griak Invitational
|
St. Paul, MN (Les Bolstad Golf Course)
|
|
Oct. 12 (Sat.)
|
Western Washington Classic
|
Bellingham, WA (Sudden Valley Golf Course)
|
|
Oct. 26 (Sat.)
|
GNAC Championships
|
Billings, MT (Amend Park)
|
|
Nov. 9 (Sat.)
|
NCAA Division II West Regional
|
Monmouth, OR (Ash Creek Preserve)
|
|
Nov. 23 (Sat.)
|
NCAA Division II National Championships
|
Sacramento, CA (Haggin Oaks Golf Complex)
|
Fans can follow WWU Cross Country online at WWUVikings.com/XC, and via social media on Twitter (@WWUTFXC), Instagram (@WWUTFXC) and Facebook (@WWUTFXC).
