Meet Info | Live Results | WAC Pre-Championship Coaches Poll | USTFCCCA Polls
KANSAS CITY, MO. – The Western Athletic Conference Cross Country Championships are finally here, and Seattle U cross country feels up to the challenge.
“This is what we all work towards – what both teams and staff have been diligently focused on all summer and fall,” said Head Coach Kelly Sullivan. “In my two short years in the WAC, we have seen both the men’s and the women’s teams across the conference take significant steps in talent and depth. I am very pleased with the focus that our own teams have had since day one.”
Held this year on Saturday, Nov. 2 at Swope Park in Kansas City, Mo., the men’s 8k race will begin at 8:00 a.m. PT, while the women’s 6k starts an hour later. The meet will feature a number of regionally-ranked squads that will provide an intriguing challenge for the Redhawks – California Baptist, UTRGV, and Utah Valley have both their men’s and women’s squads ranked by the US Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), while the women’s team at Grand Canyon also earned a spot in the West Region rankings.
Seattle U enters their own pair of formidable squads, with a mixture of youth and experience on both sides. For the men, the upperclassmen will boast seniors Andrew Ayers and Blake Delaney, as well as juniors Nathan Pixler, Hamza Ali and Kyle Kennedy. The men also enter sophomores Stephen Crocker, Ansel Pendley-Griffin and Lance Slichko, as well as promising freshman Gus Harquail. The women also have a pair of seniors in Olivia Stein and Shannan Higgins, as well as junior Rachel Kastama, to carry their upperclassmen; meanwhile, the talented trio of Courtney Gelmini, Marie-Therese Chahrouri and Ellie Postma will represent the sophomores, while Delaney Griffin, Grace Much and Fiona O’Leary make their WAC Championships debut as freshmen.
“For the men, we graduated four of our team’s five scorers from last year’s third-place team, so to be back in the hunt is a real testament to this group,” said Sullivan. “On the women’s side, we have made great positive strides, with a few new faces and some much-improved returnees. This meet will be a lot of fun for us, and I know that our improvements in every area will carry over into Regionals in two weeks and then into the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons.”
Live results from the WAC Championships will be available at blacksquirreltiming.com.
Seattle U Entries
Men:
Seniors Andrew Ayers and Blake Delaney
Juniors Hamza Ali, Kyle Kennedy and Nathan Pixler
Sophomores Stephen Crocker, Ansel Pendley-Griffin and Lance Slichko
Freshman Gus Harquail
Women:
Seniors Shannan Higgins and Olivia Stein
Junior Rachel Kastama
Sophomores Marie-Therese Chahrouri, Courtney Gelmini and Ellie Postma
Freshmen Delaney Griffin, Grace Much and Fiona O’Leary
USTFCCCA Rankings
Men:
California Baptist – 9th West Region
UTRGV – 9th South Central Region
Utah Valley – 11th Mountain Region
Women:
California Baptist – 5th West Region
Grand Canyon – 15th West Region
UTRGV – 9th South Central Region
Utah Valley – 12th Mountain Region