Bearcats to Run at NCAA Division III West Regional Championships
By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
SALEM, Ore. -- The Willamette University cross country teams will compete at the 2022 NCAA Division III West Regional Championships on Saturday, Nov. 12 at Plantes Ferry Sports Complex in Spokane, Washington. The women's 6-kilometer race is set to begin at 11 a.m. (PST) and the men's 8-kilometer race is scheduled to start at 12 p.m. Whitworth University is hosting the meet.
A total of 30 teams will be participating. Willamette has entered a full team in both races, with seven women and six men represeting the Bearcats.
Running for the WU women will be Anna Bikle (Fy., Woodside, CA/Half Moon Bay HS), JJ Chatham (Fy., Jackson, Wyoming/Jackson Hole HS), Melissa Duncan (Jr., Canyon Country, CA/Canyon HS), Leila Fischer (Jr., Wenatchee, WA/Wenatchee HS), Zoe Heino (Fy., Portland, OR/Mountainside HS), Grace Kosmicki (Fy., Pocatello, ID/Highland HS), and Aven Roberts (Fy., Missoula, MT/Hellgate HS).
Members of the Bearcat men's team who will be running are Jay Chew (Fy., Elk Grove, CA/Laguna Creek HS), Ian Curtis (Sr., Eugene, OR/South Eugene HS), Joshua Evans (So., Lafayette, CA/Acalanes HS), Milo Greenberg (Jr., Seattle, WA/The Northwest School), William Hennum (So., Philomath, OR/Liberty HS, Nev.), and Gilbert Sanchez Torres (Fy., Citrus Heights, CA/Bella Vista HS).
Hennum was Willamette's top finisher at the 2022 Northwest Conference Cross Country Championships on Oct. 29 in Hillsboro, Oregon, as he earned Second Team All-NWC honors by placing 14th in the men's race. Hennum registered a time of 25:11.7 on the 8-kilometer course. The top women's finisher for Willamette was Heino, who took 19th place in 22:53.4 over the 6-kilometer course. Bikle took 22nd place in 23:11.9.
Ten NCAA Division III regionals will be held nationwide. The team champion in each regional race will advance to the NCAA Division III National Championships set for Saturday, Nov. 19 at Forest Akers Golf Courses in Lansing, Michigan. In addition, 22 women's teams will received at-large berths into the championship meet, along with 22 men's at-large teams. The top seven individual runners in each regional race who are not on a selected team also will compete at the NCAA Championships. Overall, the women's race and the men's race at the NCAA Championship will feature 294 runners.