Cross country: Mills leads Gonzaga women to WCC title

Shelby Mills won the individual title and the Gonzaga women’s cross country team claimed its first team title since 1995 at the West Coast Conference Championships Saturday at Plantes Ferry Park in Spokane.

The Bulldogs finished tied with 14th-ranked BYU with 59 points, but the tiebreaker went to Gonzaga.

Mills covered the 6,000-meter course in 20 minutes, 55.7 seconds. She became the second woman in program history to win the WCC title. Cheska Fairbanks won in 1996.

GU’s Jessica Mildes took third place in 21:10.4 and Jordan Thurston was seventh in 21:20.4.

Bulldogs’ coach Patty Ley was named the WCC women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year. She became the first GU coach to receive that honor since Kevin Swaim in 2000.

San Francisco was third, followed by Loyola Marymount and Portland.

The Gonzaga men took third place with 83 points – its best finish since 2004. BYU won by a wide margin and had seven runners finish inside the top eight.

Troy Fraley led the Bulldogs with a ninth-place finish. He covered the 8,000-meter course in 25:12.50.

The GU men and women will compete in the NCAA West Regionals Nov. 13 at Jefferson Golf Course in Seattle.

Whitworth women claim first NWC title since 2009

The Whitworth women had three runners place inside the top five and the Pirates claimed the team title at the Northwest Conference Championships at Pacific Lutheran Univeristy’s South Park in Parkland, Washington.

Kellyn Roiko led the Pirates with a third-place finish. She covered the 6,000-meter course in 22:43. Whitworth’s Katie McKay was fourth in 22:52 and Allison Wood was fifth in 23:02.

Pirates’ coach Toby Schwarz was named NWC Women’s Coach of the Year.

Willamette was second, followed by Whitman and Puget Sound.

For the men, Chris MacMurray took 15th, covering the 8,000-meter course in 27:17, and the Pirates claimed fourth place.

Willamette won its fourth straight title. Puget Sound was second and Whitman was third.

Next up is the NCAA Division III West Region Championships Nov. 14 in Claremont, California. The top two teams in each region qualify for the NCAA Championships.

EWU women take second, men fourth at Big Sky Championships

The Eastern Washington women finished in a program-best second place at the Big Sky Conference Championships at Cedar Ridge Golf Course in Cedar City, Utah.

Mayra Chavez led the Eagles with an 18th-place finish. She covered the 5,000-meter course in 19:00.50.

Weber State won the women’s team title.

The Eastern Washington men took fourth place. The Eagles were led by Isaac Kitzan, who finished 33rd after covering the 8,000-meter course in 26:58.70. Southern Utah claimed the men’s title.

Up next is the West Regional Championships Nov. 13 in Seattle.