Bearcat Women Place Three Runners in Top Five, Win West Regional Title

By Timothy Walsh, Athletics Communications Writer

SALEM, ORE. --The Willamette University women's cross country team ran away from the competition at the NCAA Division III West Regional on Saturday, Nov. 15 at Bush's Pasture Park, capturing the West Region championship and an automatic berth to the NCAA championships.

It is the sixth West Regional women's title for the Bearcats, and their first since winning five championships in a row from 2003 through 2007.

Willamette finished with a team score of 31, while Claremont-Mudd-Scripps registered a team score of 54. Whitworth University took a distant third place with a score of 147.Fourth place in the women's team standings went to Colorado College at 168. The University of California Santa Cruz was fifth with a score of 172.

The winning team score for Willamette included three places in the top five, as the Bearcats finished 2-3-5-9-12. Michaela Freeby (Sr., Milwaukie, OR/Rex Putnam HS), Olivia Mancl (So., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS)and Taylor Ostrander (Jr., Kenai, AK/Kenai Central HS)led the way for WU, while Juliet Farnan (Jr., Lafayette, CA/Campolindo HS)and Hannah Bressler (Jr., Oak Harbor, WA/Oak Harbor HS) completed the team score.

Maya Weigel of Pomona-Pitzer won the women's title with a time of 22:11.1 over the 6-kilometer course. Freeby placed second in 22:16.6, while Mancl was third at 22:20.0.

Della Lyle of the University of Redlands crossed the finish line in fourth place at 22:21.7. Ostrander was fifth with a time of 22:28.5 and Bryn McKillop from CMS was sixth in 22:36.0.

CMS's Sara Mostatabi was seventh at 22:38.8 and Julissa Tobias of Whittier was eighth at 22:40.6. Rounding out the top 10 were Farnan of Willamette in ninth with a time of 22:42.2 and Caroline Willian from the CMS in tenth after finishing in 22:47.5.

In the men's race, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps won the team title with a score of 46. Pomona-Pitzer placed second with a team score of 52 and Occidental College was third at 97. Willamette, the highest placed Northwest Conference school, took fourth at 156 and Whittier College followed in fifth at 166.

WU men's runner Yonny Castillo (Jr., Parkdale, OR/Hood River Valley HS) was the highest finishing Bearcat. He took 10th place in the men's race with a time of 25:52.0 and should receive an individual berth.

John Guzman of Occidental took first place in the 8-kilometer race for the second year in a row. He completed the course in 25:16.0. Zorg Loustalet from Claremont-Mudd-Scripps finished second with a time of 25:21.1. John Fowler of Pomona-Pitzer was third at 25:30.4.

Benjamin Girodias of Pomona-Pitzer achieved fourth place as he reached the finish line in 25:38.7. Colin Smith from Occidental took fifth place at 25:44.0, while Corey Purcella from Pomona-Pitzer was sixth at 25:48.0. Alex Lombardo and Alex Mauro, both of CMS followed in seventh (25:49.9) and eighth (25:50.2), respectively.

David Santillan of the University of Puget Sound placed ninth in 25:50.7, while Willamette's Castillo was 10th overall.

The top 35 individual finishers in each race earned All-West Region honors. In the women's race, all seven runners from Willamette and CMS were named All-West Region. Joining Freeby, Mancl, Ostrander, Farnan and Bressler on the All-Region team were Alyssa Reese (Fr., Louisville, CO/Monarch HS), who placed 24th, and Hannah Swanson (Fr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS), who finished 34th.

In the men's race, All-West Region accolades went to seven runners for CMS, six runners from Pomona-Pitzer, four runners from Occidental and three from Willamette. In addition to Castillo, Patrick Loftus (Fr., Healdsburg, CA/Sonoma Academy) in 30th place, and Jacob Shafi (Jr., Pleasanton, CA/Amador Valley HS) in 32nd, garnered All-Region recognition.

The top two teams in each race earned automatic berths into the NCAA Division III Championships next Saturday, Nov. 22, in Mason, Ohio. The Willamette and CMS women, along with the CMS and Pomona-Pitzer men, have secured their trips to Ohio. Teams placing third, fourth and fifth are eligible for at-large berths, which will be awarded by the NCAA on Sunday, Nov. 17.

A total of 16 automatic berths and 16 at-large bids will fill the field of team entries for each race at the NCAA Championships. In addition, the top seven runners in each regional whose teams have not received automatic or at-large bids will qualify as individuals, makingCastillo likely to represent Willamette as an individual in the men's race.