Spikes ripped through wet grass and mud as runners strained through the strong winds and pouring down rain at Jefferson Park Golf Course on Saturday for the NCAA Division I Cross Country West Regional.
“This is how cross country is supposed to be run,” boomed the announcer’s voice over the speakers as the women lined up on the start line, shivering at the removal of their leggings into their competition shorts.
The Seattle University men’s and women’s teams came into the meet hungry for a strong finish, knowing full well they would have to push themselves against the best in the region, and arguably, in the country.
Both teams finished 22nd in the entire DI west region – the women in a field of 35, and the men in a field of 30.
The women’s 6k was marked by heavy winds – and of course, rain. Junior Lila Rice was the first Redhawk to cross the finish line for the fifth race of the season, finishing in 101st with a time of 22:19.5 in a field of 242.
“Lila did a good job of starting aggressively,” Steidl said. “She battled and stayed tough until the very end.”
Right behind her was freshman Olivia Stein, who finished 106th with a time of 22:21.2. Covered in mud and with a big smile on her face, Stein had just finished her first NCAA meet.
“Olivia ran a strong race,” Steidl said. “She was focused and kept moving up as the race went on. She did a good job of running strong and not letting the conditions own her.”
In their first 10k of the season, the men took off right where the women’s race left off – the wind died down just a bit, and the rain picked right back up.
First to cross the finish line for Seattle U was sophomore Ben Monk, who finished 110th with a time of 33:26.3 in a field of 205. Monk led the Redhawks throughout the entirety of the soggy course.
“Ben followed the race plan well and ran with a great amount of confidence,” Steidl said. “He got out fast and put himself in a good position, which was something I stressed to the team was important beforehand.”
Steidl said she thinks Monk executed the race well because relative to those runners around him, he either stayed even or moved up.
Behind him was redshirt senior Baxter Arguinchona, who finished 119th with a time of 33:41.9, passing some of his competition in the home stretch.
“Both teams had a lot of good performances throughout the season and raced a good effort today,” Steidl said. “There is a lot of positive to take from this season and a lot to build upon going forward.”
That race should wrap up the season for the men’s and women’s cross country teams, but the final entries for the NCAA Championships in Louisville, Ky. next weekend will be made official late Friday or Saturday.
Oregon and Boise State were the women’s teams out of the west region to auto-qualify, while Washington and Stanford auto-qualified for men.
Other Redhawk finishers:
Women – Senior Elena Smith (22:30.2) finished 122nd, junior Moira O’Connor Lenth (22:50.9) finished 142nd, senior Lindsay Frederick (22:51.6) finished 144th, sophomore Johanna Erickson (23:05.1) finished 162nd, and senior Taylor de Laveaga (24:41.1) finished 232nd.
Men – Senior Gus Arroyo (33:45.8) finished 122nd, sophomore Matthew Seidel (34:12.3) finished 146th, redshirt sophomore Tyler Flannery (34:43.6) finished 163rd, redshirt junior Nathan McLaughlin (35:04.4) finished 175th, and redshirt senior Collin Overbay (36:47.8) finished 201st.