Saturday, November 9, 2019

MONMOUTH, Ore. – Emmah Chelimo’s repeat championship played out as scripted, but Northwest Nazarene provided an exciting twist in changing the GNAC’s narrative in the NCAA Division II Women’s West Region Cross Country Championships on Saturday at Western Oregon University’s Ash Creek preserve.

Chelimo led from the start of the race and did not let go as she won her second consecutive West Region title two weeks after capturing her second straight GNAC title. The senior ran away from the field as she covered the 6,000-meter course in a time of 20:22.4, finishing well ahead of second-place Dania Holmberg of Seattle Pacific. The runner-up ran the race of her life as she covered the course in 20:49.5.

Northwest Nazarene, meanwhile, stole a page from Western Washington’s pack running playbook from two weeks earlier to surprise the field and earn the program’s first-ever trip to the NCAA Division II Championships. Led by top-25 All-West Region finishes by freshman Julia LaMar, senior Bethany Danner and junior Annalisa Hamilton, the Nighthawks placed second with a score of 134 points to place second and earn one of three automatic team qualifying slots to the national meet.

LaMar led the way for the Nighthawks, placing 11th in a time of 21:06.4. Danner finished 21st in 21:17.9 while Hamilton placed 23rd in a time of 21:22.2.

The GNAC showed well in the individual results, with four of the top-six finishers coming from the conference. In addition to Chelimo and Holmberg, Simon Fraser junior Olivia Willett placed third in 20:51.6 and Seawolves’ junior Nancy Jeptoo placed fourth in 20:53. With their top-five finishes, all four have earned invitations to the national meet. Western Oregon senior Grace Knapp, running for the final time in her home course, was sixth in 20:57.4.

A total of 10 GNAC athletes earned All-West Region honors based on top-25 finishes. Also picking up medals were Seattle Pacific senior Kate Lilly, who placed eighth in 20:59.4, and Western Washington senior Sophia Galvez, who was 16th in 21:10.1.

Chico State won the team championship for the first time since 2016 with a team score of 75 points. The Wildcats were led freshman Destiny Everett, who placed fifth in 20:56.2. Cal State East Bay finished third to pick up the final automatic team qualifying position with a score of 142 points.

Alaska Anchorage placed fourth with 146 points while Seattle Pacific was fifth with 153 points. Western Washington was the other GNAC team in the top-10, placing seventh with a score of 175 points. All three teams will have to wait to see if they earn at-larger selections when the complete field for the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships is announced on Monday afternoon. The announcement will be made via a press release at NCAA.com.

NCAA WEST REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
As Ash Creek Preserve, Monmouth, Ore.
Team Scores (Top 3 Automatically Qualify For National Championships): Chico State 75, Northwest Nazarene 134, Cal State East Bay 142, Alaska Anchorage 146, Seattle Pacific 153, Cal Poly Pomona 168, Western Washington 175, Cal State San Marcos 234, Stanislaus State 238, Simon Fraser 243, UC San Diego 256, Fresno Pacific 334, Humboldt State 360, Biola 368, Concordia-Irvine 390, Academy of Art 432, Western Oregon 437, Central Washington 471, Cal State LA 496, Notre Dame de Namur 517, Azusa Pacific 556, Cal State Monterey Bay 597, San Francisco St. 617, Sonoma State 700, Concordia (Ore.) 731, Saint Martin’s 755, Montana State Billings 771.

Top-10 Finishers: 1, Emmah Chelimo, UAA, 20:22.4 (Automatic Nationals Individual Qualifier). 2, Dania Holmberg, SPU, 20:49.5 (Automatic Nationals Individual Qualifier). 3, Olivia Willett, SFU, 20:51.6 (Automatic Nationals Individual Qualifier). 4, Nancy Jeptoo, UAA, 20:53.0 (Automatic Nationals Individual Qualifier). 5, Destiny Everett, CSUC, 20:56.2. 6, Grace Knapp, WOU, 20:57.4. 7, Nancy Juarez, STAN, 20:57.9. 8, Kate Lilly, SPU, 20:59.4. 9, Talia Swangler, CSUC, 21:03.6. 10, Angelina Ronquillo, CSUEB, 21:03.6.

All-West Region (Top-25): 11, Julia LaMar, NNU, 21:06.4. 16, Sophia Galvez, WWU, 21:10.1. 21, Bethany Danner, 21:17.9. 23, Annalisa Hamilton, NNU, 21:22.2.