Results
BELMONT, Calif. - - - The No. 15 University of Portland men’s cross country team captured its 32nd consecutive West Coast Conference Championship at the Crystal Springs Course (8k) on Saturday. The Pilots posted a team score of 36 which bested the 43 by the Dons of San Francisco.
The Pilots have won every WCC Men’s Cross Country Championship since 1979.
Graduate student Craig Hopkins paced the Pilots, finishing first overall, with a time of 25:01. Portland had four of the top ten individual finishers. Joining Hopkins in the top ten were junior Aaron Scott, freshman Cody Wells and sophomore Jared Bassett. All four were named to the WCC All-Conference First Team.
“I did not expect to win the race,” Hopkins said. “This is the first time I have been here, and I haven’t run on a lot of hilly courses this season.”
Portland’s two time All-American and defending WCC Champion Alfred Kipchumba started the race, but pulled out midway through the competition.
Head Coach Rob Conner was named the Co-Coach of the year along with Helen Lehman-Winters of San Francisco. This is the seventh time that Conner has earned WCC Coach of the Year honors.
“We felt like we had a 60-40 chance coming into the race, and knew it was going to be close,” Portland head coach Rob Conner said. “We felt if USF got some momentum during the race it would be 50-50, and that is what happened. I’m really proud of our guys for running tough, patient and smart. It takes a team effort when one of your top guys goes down, and it took a lot of toughness for us to gut it out.”
Freshman Cody Madera of San Francisco finished second overall in a time of 25:03, just two seconds behind Hopkins. Madera and the Dons claimed second place as a team, improving from their third place finish at the 2009 WCC Championships.
The Pilots next race will come at the NCAA West Regional Championships hosted by the University of Oregon in Springfield on November 13.
2010 West Coast Conference Men’s Cross Country Championships
Crystal Springs Course (Belmont, Calif.)
October 30, 2010
Team Scores: 1. Portland 36, 2. San Francisco 43, 3. Santa Clara 96, 4. Loyola Marymount 97, 5. Gonzaga 107, 6. San Diego 146, 7. St. Mary’s (Calif.) 199, 8. Pepperdine 226.
UP Individuals: 1. Craig Hopkins (25:01), 5. Aaron Scott (25:11), 6. Cody Wells (25:17), 7. Jared Bassett (25:20), 17. Robert Cosby (26:01), (27). Scott Olberding (26:18).
WCC HONORS
Champion – Craig Hopkins, Portland
Freshman of the Year – Cody Madera, San Francisco
Co-Coach of the Year – Rob Conner (Portland) & Helen Lehman-Winters (San Francisco)
2010 Men’s All-Conference First Team
Craig Hopkins, Portland
Jose Madera, San Francisco
Bor Ganbileg, San Francisco
Chris Boyle, Gonzaga
Aaron Scott, Portland
Cody Wells, Portland
Jared Bassett, Portland
Chris Flaherty, San Diego
Jeremy Grace, San Francisco
Weston Strum, Loyola Marymount
All-WCC Honorable Mention
Ben Demaree, Santa Clara
Sterling Lockert, Loyola Marymount
Austin Jones, Santa Clara
Steven Garboden, San Francisco
Will Marquardt, San Francisco