WCC Tournament Central
PORTLAND, Ore. - - - The University of Portland cross country programs are set to compete at the 2010 West Coast Conference championships at the Crystal Springs course in Belmont, Calif. this Saturday, October 30. The women’s 6k is scheduled to begin at 9:00 AM followed by the men’s 8k at 9:45 AM. The awards ceremony will be held at the nearby Sofitel Hotel at 12:30 PM.
Men’s Cross Country
The No. 15 Pilots were picked as the preseason favorite to capture their 32nd consecutive WCC title while also placing five runners on the preseason all-conference team. Of the six meets so far this year the Portland varsity squad has run twice, submitting a dominate win at the Charles Bowles Invitational and a 4th place showing at the NCAA Pre-Nationals.
At the 2009 WCC Championships the Pilots finished first in the team standings, earning their 31st consecutive WCC title. Four Pilots placed among the top ten finishers behind the record run of junior Alfred Kipchumba who ran the 8k course in 24:20, a full 30 seconds faster than the old record. The other Pilots who finished in the top 10 were redshirt junior Jared Bassett, junior Lars Erik Malde, and redshirt senior Matthew Frerker.
All four runners are returning for the 2010 edition of the WCC Championships.
The Pilots are the lone WCC member school in the USTFCCCA National rankings; however, the San Francisco Dons have climbed up in the West Regional rankings to their current No. 13 position.
Women’s Cross Country
The Portland Pilots were picked second in the West Coast Conference Preseason Coaches poll, behind defending conference champions San Francisco. Junior Lyndy Davis was the lone Pilot selected to the preseason all-conference team.
At the 2009 WCC Championships the Pilots finished third, behind Loyola Marymount and champion San Francisco. Senior Theresa Hailey and Davis submitted top ten times of 21:48 and 21:44, which were good for 9th and 7th place, respectively. Both runners earned 2009 WCC first team honors.
The 2010 WCC Championships figure to be another tough battle.
“The team is very excited for this meet. Training has gone well the past few weeks, and many of our athletes are reaching new levels of fitness,” said Head Coach Ian Solof. “Our expectations are only that we run hard and fight for every spot.”
The Portland women have won 19 of the 25 cross country championships that the WCC has sponsored, including 12 of the last 14.