Strong Showings Across The U.S. For GNAC XC Teams
Runners from WWU and UAA performed well at last week's Lewis Crossover in Romeoville, Ill.
Runners from WWU and UAA performed well at last week's Lewis Crossover in Romeoville, Ill.
Related Links

Thursday, October 12, 2023
by Evan O'Kelly

PORTLAND, Ore. – A big showing at last week’s Lewis Crossover vaulted the Alaska Anchorage men’s cross country team and the Western Washington women’s cross country team up the latest USTFCCCA national coaches poll.

UAA first cracked the national poll last week at No. 30, before racing to a sixth-place team finish at the 31-team Lewis Crossover to turn heads and jump to No. 20 in the national rankings this week. The move comes a week prior to the GNAC Championships, and makes the matchup with preseason favorite No. 12 Western Washington that much more compelling.

The Viking women enjoyed similar success at the Lewis Crossover, finishing in sixth place among a field of 33 teams. That was good enough to propel WWU from No. 27 up to No. 15 in the latest USTFCCCA national poll, marking the team’s highest rank of the year.

Only two conference teams will be in action this weekend, with Western Oregon competing in the Linfield-hosted George Oja Invitational and Simon Fraser sending runners to the Provincial Championships on Saturday morning. The focus now for all conference teams however is the upcoming GNAC Championships.

2023 GNAC Cross Country Championships
 

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.

GNAC Cross Country Schedule - Oct. 14
Date Meet Location Start Time GNAC Teams Competing
10/14 George Oja Invitational McMinnville, Ore. 9:30 a.m. (PDT) WOU
10/14 2023 Provincial Championships South Surrey, B.C. 11 a.m. (PDT) SFU
This Week's Storylines

NASH, ZAPHERSON PROPEL SEAWOLVES: Reigning GNAC champion Coleman Nash was the headline finisher at the Lewis Crossover, placing 10th (24:15.5) among a field of 327 runners to prove he’s in prime form heading into the championship meet. The 2022 GNAC Newcomer of the Year Michael Zapherson was close behind Nash in 16th place (24:27.8), as the Seawolves finished with 230 points to place sixth among the highly-competitive field. Representing the Seawolf women well was senior Nell Baker, who clocked a 6k time of 21:57.7 to finish in 28th place.

VIKING STILL THE TOP DOG: In spite of UAA’s landmark performance, Western Washington’s men’s team remains the squad to beat after placing fourth at the Lewis Crossover with 194 points. WWU’s Kevin McDermott finished in 12th place (24:16.2) and Andrew Oslin was right behind in 14th (24:22.7) to help keep the reigning GNAC champions and preseason favorites towards the top of the national rankings. Ashley Reeck led the Viking women at the event, finishing in 18th place with a 6k time of 21:40.7.

FORDHAM BRILLIANT IN THE S.F. HEAT: Warm conditions at the San Francisco State Invitational didn’t deter Alaska’s Rosie Fordham, who blazed to her second victory of the season. Fordham cruised across the line in a time of 21:25.9 to beat 141 other runners and help the Nanook women to a fifth-place team finish with 131 points. Reigning GNAC champion Kendall Kramer was close behind in fourth place (21:44.3), and Delainey Zock followed in 19th place (22:55.3).

SFU MEN, WOMEN ARE FIT AHEAD OF CHAMPIONSHIPS: Simon Fraser’s men’s team looked to be in top form at the San Francisco State Invitational, turning in a second-place finish (65 points) among a field of 16 teams at the event. Sebastian Brinkman clocked an 8k time of 24:53.8 to finish third, and Ephrem Mekonnen was right behind in fourth with a time of 25:01.8. On the women’s side, SFU placed third behind strong performances from Grace Chalk in 15th (22:49.8), Kate Cameron in 17th (22:53.3), and Selin Tasdemir in 23rd (23:05.8).

CORREA MAKES IT 3-FOR-3: While Nash stole headlines in Illinois, Central Washington’s Johan Correa remained undefeated in his cross country career with a victory at the Emerald City Open. Correa bested a field of 74 runners with an 8k time of 25:07.6, giving him three wins in three races so far this fall. Correa’s top 8k time this season was 24:23.7, which he ran en route to victory at the Pacific Lutheran Invitational on Sept. 16.

ESVELT CLAIMS FIRST WIN OF 2023: Seattle Pacific harrier Annika Esvelt claimed her first victory of the fall season, clocking a 6k time of 22:25.8 to win the women’s Emerald City Open among a field of 46 competitors. Teammate Maya Ewing checked in with a fourth place finish in 23:47.8, which helped the Falcons to a runner-up finish at their hometown event with 48 points. SPU senior Brennan LeBlanc had a notable showing on the men’s side, placing fourth with an 8k time of 26:29.8 which was his highest-ever placing in a collegiate cross-country race.

WALCHACK-SLOAN A TRUE TITLE CONTENDER: After finishing sixth at last year’s GNAC Championships, Cassidy Walchak-Sloan of Saint Martin’s has proven this fall that she is once again a legitimate title contender at next week’s meet. The junior was the conference’s top finisher at the Lewis Crossover, running a 6k time of 21:40.6 which was her top mark of the 2023 season thus far. SMU’s Elke Wijkmans followed in 38th place (22:14.6), helping the Saint women rise to their highest USTFCCCA regional ranking of the season at No. 6.

MORE OF THE SAME FROM ERLER, KEMBLE: Northwest Nazarene has come to expect superior performances from Brody Kemble and Morgan Erler, and the Nighthawks delivered once again at the Steve T. Reeder Memorial Invitational. Erler ran a PR 5k time of 18:57.0 to finish in eighth place among a field of 69 runners, and she was highest placing non-Division I runner at the event. On the men’s side, Kemble placed 12th among a field of 91 competitors with a 7k time of 21:36.3.

HELDT, SMITH LEAD WOLVES: Western Oregon’s women were right behind Alaska at the San Francisco State Invitational, finishing in sixth place with a team score of 143. Caitlin Heldt – last year’s third-place finisher at the GNAC Championships – took seventh place with a time of 22:00.4 while teammate Riley Smith finished in 20th with a mark of 22:56.3. The Wolves’ men also placed sixth as a team, finishing with 167 points. Freshman phenom Kanoa Blake led the way in 29th place (26:03.1) and was the leader among four Wolves who finished in the top-50 in the field of 174 competitors.

Runner to Watch

Selin Tasdemir – Simon Fraser

A top candidate for GNAC Freshman of the Year (awarded to the top-finishing freshman at the GNAC Championships), Tasdemir has been a fixture in the Red Leafs’ lineup this fall. She started off her campaign with an 11th-place finish at the PLU Invitational on Sept. 16, running what stands as her top 6k time of the season at 23:02.0. The Richmond, B.C., native followed with a time of 23:12.1 at the Bill Roe Classic on Sept. 23, finishing in the top third among a cast of 102 competitors. On the heels of her most recent time of 23:05.8 at the San Francisco State Invitational, Tasdemir figures to be a key component for the SFU women who should contend for the GNAC title.

GNAC XC In The Weekly Coaches Poll Rankings
 

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 Oct. 24.

UAA stayed at No. 5 in the west region despite its big leap up the national rankings, while the WWU men stayed at No. 3 in the region and dropped one spot to No. 12 in the national poll. SFU’s men moved up one spot in the regional rankings to No. 7, while Western Oregon dropped out of this week’s poll. On the women’s side WWU remained the lone nationally ranked team, skyrocketing from No. 27 to No. 15 by virtue of their sixth-place finish at the Lewis Crossover. WWU jumped to No. 2 in the west region while SMU moved up one spot to No. 6, Simon Fraser jumped two spots to No. 7 and Alaska fell one spot to No. 9.

USTFCCCA National Rankings - Men's Cross Country
Poll Team 1 Team 2
Preseason 10. WWU 27. SFU
Week 1 10. WWU 28. SFU
Week 2 9. WWU -- 
Week 3 10. WWU RV UAA
Week 4 11. WWU 30. UAA
Week 5 12. WWU 20. UAA

 

USTFCCCA National Rankings - Women's Cross Country
Poll Team 1  
Preseason --  
Week 1 29. WWU  
Week 2 27. WWU  
Week 3 28. WWU  
Week 4 27. WWU  
Week 5 15. WWU  

 

USTFCCCA West Region Rankings - Men's Cross Country
Poll Team 1 Team 2 Team 3 Team 4
Preseason 2. WWU 5. SFU 8. UAA --
Week 1 2. WWU 5. SFU 8. UAA --
Week 2 2. WWU 6. SFU 8. UAA --
Week 3 2. WWU 5. UAA 8. SFU 10. WOU
Week 4 3. WWU 5. UAA 8. SFU 10. WOU
Week 5 3. WWU 5. UAA 7. SFU --

 

USTFCCCA West Region Rankings - Women's Cross Country
Poll Team 1 Team 2 Team 3 Team 4
Preseason 6. WWU 7. UAF 8. SFU --
Week 1 5. WWU 6. UAF 7. SFU 8. SMU
Week 2 5. WWU 6. UAF 8. SFU 9. SMU
Week 3 5. WWU 7. SMU 8. UAF 9. SFU
Week 4 4. WWU 7. SMU 8. UAF 9. SFU
Week 5 2. WWU 6. SMU 7. SFU 9. UAF
 
2023 GNAC Cross Country Runners of the Week
Date Women's Runner of the Week Men's Runner of the Week
Aug. 28 Rosie Fordham, Alaska Coleman Nash, Alaska Anchorage
Sept. 5 Ashley Reeck, Western Washington Johan Correa, Central Washington
Sept. 11 Cassidy Walchak-Sloan, Saint Martin's Isaac Cortes, Saint Martin's
Sept. 18 Annika Esvelt, Seattle Pacific Johan Correa, Central Washington
Sept. 25 Caitlin Heldt, Western Oregon Coleman Nash, Alaska Anchorage
Oct. 2 None Selected None Selected
Oct. 9 Rosie Fordham, Alaska Johan Correa, Central Washington

 

2023 GNAC Cross Country Women's Race Winners
 
Date Race Winner School Distance Time
8/26 Seawolf Throwdown Rosie Fordham Alaska 5k 18:10.5
9/2 Puget Sound Invitational Ashley Reeck Western Washington 5k 17:41.0
9/9 Nanook Forest Clash Kendall Kramer Alaska 6k 22:32.0
9/22 Mike Johnson Classic Caitlin Heldt Western Oregon 6k 21:15.0
9/30 Whitman College Invitational Morgan Erler Northwest Nazarene 6k 21:45.6
10/6 San Francisco State Invitational Rosie Fordham Alaska 6k 21:25.9
10/7 Emerald City Open Annika Esvelt Seattle Pacific 6k 22:25.8

 

2023 GNAC Cross Country Men's Race Winners
 
Date Race Winner School Distance Time
8/26 Seawolf Throwdown Coleman Nash Alaska Anchorage 5k 15:06.0
9/2 Puget Sound Invitational Johan Correa Central Washington 5k 15:00.4
9/9 Nanook Forest Clash John Peckham Alaska Anchorage 8k 25:53.0
9/15 Cascade Collegiate Preview Brody Kemble Northwest Nazarene 6k 18:25.5
9/16 Pacific Lutheran Invitational Johan Correa Central Washington 8k 24:23.7
9/22 Mike Johnson Classic Kanoa Blake Western Oregon 8k 24:42.7
9/23 Bill Roe Classic Coleman Nash Alaska Anchorage 8k 24:41.7
10/7 Emerald City Open Johan Correa Central Washington 8k 25:07.6

2023 GNAC Cross Country Women's Race Winners

Last Week's GNAC Results
 

San Francisco State Invitational (Oct. 6 at Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, Calif.): Men (8,000m): 1, Chico State, 22. 2, Simon Fraser, 65. 3, Concordia Irvine, 91. 4, Stanislaus State, 131. 5, Fresno Pacific, 164. 6, Western Oregon, 167. 7, Cal St. Monterey Bay, 188. 9, Dominican, 234. 10, San Jose State, 261. 11, San Francisco State, 280. 12, Alaska, 304. 13, Academy of Art, 426. 14, Menlo Coll., 428. 15, Santa Rosa, 466. 16, Jessup, 494. Top 5 Finishers: 1, Daniel Hernandez, Chico State, 24:42.0. 2, Mario Giannini, Chico State, 24:49.8. 3, Sebastian Brinkman, SFU, 24:53.8. 4, Ephrem Mekonnen, SFU, 25:01.8. 5, Dylan White, Chico State, 25:03.2. Other Top GNAC Finishers: 10, Scott Anrdt, SFU, 25:24.4. 23, Jose Castro, SFU, 25:52.5. 29, Kanoa Blake, WOU, 26:03.1. 36. Easton Pomrankey, WOU, 26:16.6. 37, Andrew Thomson, SFU, 26:18.3. Women (6,000m): 1, Chico State, 57. 2, Concordia Irvine, 59. 3, Simon Fraser, 108. 4, Stanislaus State, 124. 5, Alaska, 131. 6, Western Oregon, 143. 7, UC Davis, 204. 8, Cal St. East Bay, 239. 9, San Francisco State, 250. 10, CSU Monterey Bay, 257. 11, San Jose State, 295. 12, Fresno Pacific, 296. 13, Sonoma State, 349. 14, Jessup, 385. 15, Dominican, 428. Top 5 Women: 1, Rosie Fordham, UAF, 21:25.9. 2, Najwa Chouati, Unat., 21:33.5. 3, Jori Paradis, CUI, 21:34.8. 4, Kendall Kramer, UAF, 21:44.3. 5, Della Molina, Chico St., 21 :54.2. Other Top GNAC Finishers: 7, Caitlin Heldt, WOU, 22:00.4. 15, Grace Chalk, SFU, 22:49.8. 17, Kate Cameron, SFU, 22:53.3. 19, Delainey Zock, UAF, 22:55.3. 20, Riley Smith, WOU, 22:56.3. 23, Selin Tasdemir, SFU, 23:05.8.

Yellowjacket/Battlin’ Bear Open (Oct. 6 at Amend Park, Billings, Mont.): Men (8,000m): 1, South Dakota Mines, 79. 2, Carroll, 86. 3, Black Hills State, 91. 4, Montana Tech, 96. 5, Chadron State, 103. 6, Mary, 123. 7, Rocky Mountain Coll., 126. 8, MSU Billings, 219. 9, Montana Western, 264. 10, Providence, 272. Top 5 Finishers: 1, Jackson Wilson, RMC, 24:17.0. 2, Edwin Kipainoi, Montana Tech, 24:31.7. 3, Timothy Brown, BHSU, 24:35.0. 4, Corbyn Svec, RMC, 24:56.4. 5, Zack Gacnik, Carroll, 24:58.0. Top 5 GNAC Finishers: 17, Andrew Rush, MSUB, 25:24.4. 54. Bryant Edgerton, MSUB, 26:43.6. 70, Will Hyatt, MSUB, 27:27.2. 82, Nate Tweedy, MSUB, 28:29.5. 92, Jackson Bailey, MSUB, 29:51.0. Women (6,000m): 1, Mary, 24. 2, South Dakota Mines, 81. 3, Black Hills State, 83. 4, Carroll, 101. 5, Rocky Mountain Coll., 102. 6, Chadron State, 136. 7, Montana Tech, 150. 8, MSU Billings, 239. 9, Central Wyoming Coll., 270. Top 5 Finishers: 1, Alyssa Becker, Mary, 21:05.9. 2, Andrijana Fundak, Mary, 21:19.0. 3, Sylvia Brown, BHSU, 21:23.8. 4, Kristine Kalthoff, Mary, 21:42.4. 5, Clare Fischer, SD Mines, 21:54.4. Top 5 GNAC Finishers: 44, Carey Berendsen, MSUB, 24:16.6. 50, Cecily Eagleton, MSUB, 24:25.4. 66, Aspen Tolman, MSUB, 25:18.5. 69, Toree Manning, MSUB, 25:29.3. 87, Chloe Shennum, MSUB, 27:21.4.

Steve T. Reeder Memorial Invitational (Oct. 6 at Steve & Dona Cross-Country Course, Logan, Utah): 1, Utah State, 26. 2, Weber State, 42. 3, Southern Idaho, 85. 4, Salt Lake, 98. 5, Northwest Nazarene, 139. 6, Westminster, 155. Top 5 Finishers: 1, Isaac Hedengren, Unat., 20:59.7. 2, Caleb Johnson, Unat., 21:10.6. 3, Hayden Gray, Unat., 21:15.6. 4, Eric Nelson, Utah State, 21:17.5. 5, Logan Anderson, Weber State, 21:21.3. Top 5 GNAC Finishers: 12, Brody Kemble, NNU, 21:36.3. 46, Ian Stockett, NNU, 23:17.3. 48, Carter Stedman, NNU, 23:22.1. 58, Aaron Heberlein, NNU, 23:40.7. 63, Asher Ingram, NNU, 23:47.6. Women (5,000m): 1, Utah State, 20. 2, Southern Idaho, 53. 3, Salt Lake, 80. 4, Northwest Nazarene, 96. Top 5 Finishers: 1, Elizabeth Phillips, SIU, 18:22.4. 2, Malia Lowe, Utah State, 18:23.7. 3, Sammi Lee, Utah State, 18:31.5. 4, Morgan Nygren, Utah State, 18:33.0. 5, Caroline Fischer, Utah, 18:40.6. Top 5 GNAC Finishers: 8, Morgan Erler, NNU, 18:57.0. 44, Becca Darwood, NNU, 20:31.9. 46, Keelin Stewart, NNU, 20:40.1. 48, Olivia Klein, NNU, 20:47.6. 50, Jordan Gram, NNU, 21:02.6.

Emerald City Open (Oct. 7 at Lower Woodland Park, Seattle, Wash.): Men (8,000m): 1, Club Northwest, 30. 2, Western Washington, 53. 3, Central Washington, 73. 4, Seattle Pacific, 84. 5, Trolltown Trotters, 151. 6, Seattle Running Club, 169. 7, Lake Sammamish Run Club, 183. Top 5 Finishers: 1, Johan Correa, CWU, 25:07.6. 2, Mac Franks, CNW, 25:30.8. 3, Colin Monaghan, CNW, 26:01.5. 4, Brennan LeBlanc, SPU, 26:29.8. 5, Dylan Lennon, WWU, 26:31.5. Other Top GNAC Finishers: 6, Drew Weber, WWU, 26:34.1. 9, Leo Rutledge, WWU, 26:49.2. 13, Steiner Christensen, CWU, 27:36.3. 14, Silas Demmert, SPU, 27:38.3. 15, Colin Hitchcock, CWU, 27:40.0. Women (6,000m): 1, Western Washington, 28. 2, Seattle Pacific, 48. 3, Central Washington, 83. 4, Club Northwest, 84. 5, Lake Sammamish Run Club, 153. 6, Olympic College, 155. Top 5 Finishers: 1, Annika Esvelt, SPU, 22:25.8. 2, Emma Smith, WWU, 23:34.1. 3, Lindsay Eysenbach, CNW, 23:45.5. 4, Maya Ewing, SPU, 23:47.8. 5, Emmy Kroontje, WWU, 23:49.5. Other Top GNAC Finishers: 6, Kayla Ramsey, WWU, 24:00.1. 7, Laura Halsell, WWU, 24:09.4. 8, Evelyn Collins-Winn, WWU, 24:36.4. 9, Elie Bassett, WWU, 24:41.2. 10. Josephine Stevenson, WWU, 24:49.4.

Lewis Crossover (Oct. 7 at Lewis Cross-Country Course, Romeoville, Ill.): Men (8,000m): 1, Colorado School of Mines, 34. 2, Colorado Christian, 77. 3, Lewis, 155. 4, Western Washington, 194. 5, Walsh, 219. 6, Alaska Anchorage, 230. 7, Saginaw Valley, 270. 8, Wayne State, 279. 9, Fort Lewis, 279. 10, Minnesota Duluth, 283. 11, Biola, 303. 12, Tiffin, 344. 13, Michigan Tech, 364. 14, Hillsdale, 376. 15, Wisconsin Parkside, 394. 16, Malone, 464. 17, Ferris State, 475. 18, Findlay, 488. 19, Indiana (Pa.), 492. 20, Colorado Mesa, 508. 21, San Marcos, 532. 22, Davenport, 568. 23, Concordia-St. Paul, 598. 24, Southern Connecticut State, 648. 25, Purdue Northwest, 752. 26, Winona State, 770. 27, Saint Martin’s, 787. 28, Ohio Dominican, 835. 29, Trevecca Nazarene, 844. 30, Edinboro, 897. 31, Northwood, 952. Top 5 Finishers: 1, Matthew Storer, Colorado Christian, 23:46.7. 2, Duncan Fuehne, Colorado Mines, 23:49.7. 3, Ransom Allen, Wayne State, 23:55.8. 4, Trent Cochran, Colorado Christian, 23:56.0. 5, Noah Fisher, Findlay, 23:57.1. Top 5 GNAC Finishers: 10, Coleman Nash, UAA, 24:15.5. 12, Kevin McDermott, WWU, 24:16.2. 14, Andrew Oslin, WWU, 24:22.7. 16, Michael Zapherson, UAA, 24:27.8. 47, George Payne, UAA, 24:57.4. Women (6,000m): 1, Colorado School of Mines, 49. 2, Grand Valley State, 98. 3, Lewis, 131. 4, Winona State, 137. 5, Colorado Christian, 196. 6, Western Washington, 198. 7, Biola, 200. 8, Fort Lewis, 243. 9, Wayne State, 311. 10, Saginaw Valley, 331. 11, Saint Martin’s, 345. 12, Walsh, 401. 13, Michigan Tech, 432. 14, Minnesota Duluth, 448. 15, Northern Michigan, 460. 16, Wisconsin Parkside, 496. 17, Colorado Mesa, 498. 18, Findlay, 512. 19, Edinboro, 535. 20, Hillsdale, 571. 21, Davenport, 615. 22, Ferris State, 625. 23, Southern Connecticut State, 644. 24, Alaska Anchorage, 644. 25, Malone, 646. 26, San Marcos, 662. 27, Academy of Art, 707. 28, Northwood, 723. 29, Tiffin, 845. 30, Trevecca Nazarene, 850. 31, Purdue Northwest, 921. 32, Ohio Dominican, 1008, 33, Concordia-St. Paul, 1042. Top 5 Finishers: 1, Lindsay Cunningham, Winona State, 20:06.8. 2, Kaylee Beyer, Winona State, 21:02.9. 3, Klaudia O’Malley, Grand Valley State, 21:06.2. 4, Liz Wamsley, Hillsdale, 21:06.9. 5, Kylie Anicic, Edinboro, 21:17.3. Top 5 GNAC Finishers: 17, Cassidy Walchak-Sloan, SMU, 21:40.6. 18, Ashley Reeck, WWU, 21:40.7. 28, Nell Baker, UAA, 21:57.7. 38, Elke Wijkmans, SMU, 22:14.6. 43. Ila Davis, WWU, 22:17.5.

 

 

 

 
Facebook Twitter YouTube Podcasts Blog Video RSS Photos
Related Articles
Baron Rings