SALEM, Ore. – Willamette swept the team titles for the second year in a row, while the Pacific Lutheran women took sixth and the men placed ninth at the 2014 NWC Cross Country Championships Saturday morning at Bush Park.
The Lute women totaled 229 points to finish sixth in the team standings. Willamette finished one spot removed from a perfect score of 15, with the Bearcats boasting five of the top six racers to total 16 points. Whitworth finished second with 59 points, followed by Puget Sound (79), Whitman (86), Lewis & Clark (145) and Linfield (153). Pacific finished two points behind PLU in eighth (229), with George Fox placing ninth (237).
Genevieve Brandt was PLU's top finisher, placing 33rd with a time of 23:51.2 on the 6k course. Shailee R. Woodard placed 54th with a time of 24:50.2 and Amie Wilson finished 59th with a time of 24:54.1. Eyerusalem Betemariam (25:08.4) and Amanda Seely (25:11.3) wrapped PLU's top five placing 65th and 66th. Willamette's Taylor Ostrander won the individual conference crown with a time of 22:25.2.
The PLU men finished ninth with a team score of 254. Willamette repeated as team champion with a score of 41, while Puget Sound took second (69) and Whitman took third (80). Whitworth placed fourth (86), followed by Lewis & Clark (120), Linfield (161), George Fox (164), Pacific (208) and PLU.
Charles Mogen led PLU with a 41st-place showing, finishing the 8k race with a time of 27:31.7. Matthew Macfarlane placed 54th with a time of 28:00.9 and Brendon Bonnell took 59th at 28:10.9. Egan Dunning finished 70th (29:06.6) and Ethan Smith closed out PLU's top five with a time of 29:47.2 to take 71st. Pacific's Tyler Shipley won the individual title with a time of 25:44.8.