SIMON FRASER SHINES IN DEBUT: Taking the team titles on the men’s and women’s sides at last week’s Pacific Lutheran Invitational, Simon Fraser had a strong start to its 2023 season. Rachael Watkins and Grace Chalk finished in third and fourth, respectively while Kate Cameron (sixth), Grace Mack (eighth) and Charlotte Prangley (ninth) gave the Red Leafs five of the top-10 finishers on the women’s side. Sebastian Brinkman was SFU’s top men’s finisher in second place, while Ephrem Mekonnen (third) and Jose Castro (ninth) each also finished in the top-10 last week.

Read More: Red Leafs Dominate Season-Opening Cross Country Races (SFU Recap)

VIKINGS FRESH HEADING INTO HOME MEET: Preseason favorite Western Washington figures to have a fresh lineup at its home meet on Saturday, as the team has not competed since cruising to victory at the Puget Sound Invitational on Sept. 2 in Lakewood, Wash. The WWU women went 1-through-14 and were led by individual winner Ashley Reeck, while the men had five top-10 finishers led by runner-up Samuel Lingwall. Saturday will be the penultimate day of competition for the Vikings prior to the championship as they’re scheduled to compete again on Oct. 7 at two different meets.

CORREA IS 2-FOR-2: Central Washington newcomer Johan Correa has had as good of a start to his cross country career as possible, winning each of the two races he has competed in this fall. Correa claimed his second GNAC Runner of the Week honor on Monday, after topping the field at last week’s Pacific Lutheran Invitational. His two wins have come against Western Washington and Simon Fraser runners, and Saturday will provide his largest platform yet to put his early season success to the test.

Read More: Wildcats Travel To Bellingham For Bill Roe Classic (CWU Preview)

ESVELT, FALCONS RACE FOR 2ND STRAIGHT WEEK: Much like Correa on the men’s side, it was a strong individual effort from Seattle Pacific’s Annika Esvelt that stole the show in last week’s women’s PLU Invitational. Esvelt placed second among the field of 95 runners hitting a 6k PR of 21:41.3 in her first race of the 2023 season and going 34 seconds faster than she did on the same course in 2022. The junior will lead the Falcons into their second straight week of competition on Saturday.

SAINTS, NANOOKS LOOK TO MAKE MOVES: It was WWU that was unanimously favored in the preseason coaches poll, but both the Saint Martin’s and Alaska women have hopes to compete for the conference title. Both squads will compete on Saturday in Bellingham after having already logged impressive team and individual performances this fall. SMU’s Cassidy Walchak-Sloan was the conference’s top finisher at the Ash Creek Collegiate on Sept. 8, taking third on her way to GNAC Runner of the Week. The Nanooks’ Rosie Fordham and Kendall Kramer have each logged wins in 2023, and will have a chance to put their talents on display in their largest meet of the season thus far on Saturday. On the men’s side, SMU’s Isaac Cortes stole the show in Monmouth two weeks ago as he leads a Saints team that was slotted fifth in the preseason coaches poll.

ANDREW IN A RUSH: Montana State Billings freshman Andrew Rush picked up right where he left off last week, again finishing as the team’s top performer at the Montana Invitational. Facing a field of mostly Division I competition, Rush was the sixth Division II runner across the line and finished 25th overall with an 8k time of 25:43.8.

Read More: Yellowjackets Compete At UM Invitational (MSUB Recap)

KEMBLE VICTORIOUS IN CALDWELL: Northwest Nazarene’s Brody Kemble picked up a victory last week, topping a field of 62 runners at the Cascade Collegiate Conference Preview. Kemble notched a 6k time of 18:25.5 – a collegiate best for the sophomore. The victory came two weeks after his third-place finish at the Dr. Thad Schols Classic, as Kemble has gotten off to a strong start through his first two meets of 2023.

Read More: Kemble’s Win Highlights Nighthawks’ Performance (NNU Recap)

John Peckham – Alaska Anchorage

Helping the Seawolf men to victories in both of their dual meets against in-state rival Alaska, Peckham has proved to be one of the top runners in the conference thus far in 2023. While the Seawolves lean on reigning GNAC Men’s Cross Country Athlete of the Year Coleman Nash, Peckham plays a vital role among a cohesive men’s team that will be in the mix on Saturday in Bellingham. Peckham started his season with a second-place finish at the Seawolf Throwdown on Aug. 26 with a collegiate-best 5k time of 15:25.5. The junior followed with an individual win at the Nanook Forest Clash on Sept. 9 with an 8k time of 25:53.0. Look for Peckham to be a key contributor as UAA moves into the second half of its season. Although he transferred from Idaho in 2022-23, the 2023 season marks his first fall on the cross country course for the Seawolves.

Read More: Peckham Runs To Victory In Fairbanks (UAA Release)

The United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association releases national and regional rankings throughout the 2023 cross country season. The next set of rankings will be released on Sept. 26.

Western Washington was the lone GNAC program to appear in both national polls, with the men moving up one spot to No. 9 and the women moving up two spots to No. 27. The WWU men stayed at No. 2 in the regional rankings while the WWU women stayed at No. 5. The GNAC had three teams in the men’s regional rankings for the third straight week and four teams in the women’s regional rankings for the second week in a row.

The 2023 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Cross Country Championships will be held Saturday, Oct. 21 at Kincaid Park and will be hosted by the University of Alaska Anchorage in Anchorage, Alaska. All 10 conference members will compete in both that event as well as the ensuing NCAA West Region Championships which are set for Nov. 4 at Western Oregon.