The Eastern Oregon University men's cross country team and two EOU women's runners will be competing in the NAIA National Championships Saturday.
The Mountaineer men qualified with one of the eight at-large berths and enter the race ranked No. 18 in the nation. Karlee Coffey and Alma Garcilazo each made the women's event after finishing in the top 15 in the conference championship meet.
The meet will be at the Fort Vancouver Historical Site in Vancouver, Wash., and is hosted by the Cascade Collegiate Conference and Concordia University. It marks the first time the Cross Country National Championship will be run on the west coast. Kenosha, Wis., was the host for the past two years. Other cities that have hosted the NAIA Cross Country National Championships include: Omaha, Neb.; Oklahoma City, Okla.; Liberty, Mo.; and Salina, Kan. The NAIA has conducted the men's championship since the inaugural 1955 race in Salina, Kan. The women began the Championship event in 1980 in Salina.
Fort Vancouver Historical Site is a unique, historic and challenging competition venue that boasts a successful record for hosting world class cross country championship events, including USA Men's and Women's Cross Country National Championships and World Cross Country Trials.
Thirty-two women's teams, including 23 conference/independent/unaffiliated champions, two conference runners-up, six at-large bids, one host berth and 117 individual qualifiers, will run in the 5K race. Azusa Pacific (Calif.) captured its first women's cross country title a year ago. Armed as the top-ranked team, the Cougars will look to junior Jacky Kipwambok, who finished second at the national meet a year ago.
The College of Idaho enters the meet with the country's No. 6 ranking. Stephanie Helm leads the CCC champion 'Yotes. The junior finished third at the conference championships. Concordia and Southern Oregon finished the season moving into the top 25 at No. 22 and 25 respectively. EOU fell out of the rankings after a fourth place finish at the conference championships.
Coffey has been a solid runner for the Mountaineers this season. The freshman finished in the top four in every race but one this year. Garcilazo is coming off her fastest 5K time of the season when she ran a 19:02 in Springfield at the CCC Championships.
The men's 8K race will also welcome 32 teams, including 22 conference/independent/unaffiliated champions, eight at-large bids, one conference runner-up, one host berth and 102 individual qualifiers. Malone (Ohio) will look to claim its third-consecutive men's national title. The past two seasons the Pioneers have won by a margin of 57 and 143 points, respectively. Malone is led by junior All-American Aaron Melhorn, who took fifth last year at the National Championships.
Southern Oregon's men's team enters the race ranked first in the nation. David Laney leads the Raiders after posting the fastest time in an 8K race in the Cascade Conference this season. Laney led SOU to its second straight conference title, won the individual title at the CCC Championships, and was named the league's athlete of the year.
The Mountaineer men will take Ryan Booth, Kody Coxen, Justin Dean, DJ Flores, Terry Johnsen, Forrest Lumpry, Kevin Miller, and Devin White to the race. EOU finished third at the conference championships behind four top 25 finishes led by Flores' third-place finish.
The Cascade Conference led all men's national programs with four teams in the NAIA Top 25. The College of Idaho is ranked eighth, and Concordia will run as the host and No. 24 in the country.
The Cross Country National Championships are free and open to the public. The men's race begins at 10:30 a.m. PST, and the women's race starts at approximately 11:45 a.m. PST.
