Dawgs Set For West Regionals Run In Sacramento

2023 Pac-12 Cross Country Championships

Friday, Oct. 27 | University Place, Wash.

Chambers Creek Regional Park

A strong run against the region is required for the Husky cross country teams if they are to reach their goal of racing at the NCAA Championships. The NCAA West Regional meet is the final hurdle to clear, and it goes this Friday, Nov. 10, at the Haggin Oaks Golf Complex in Sacramento.
 
Friday morning the women’s 6,000-meters championship gets underway at 10 a.m. featuring the Pac-12 Champion and 8th-ranked Husky women’s team. The 22nd-ranked Husky men’s squad runs at 11 a.m. and moves up to 10,000-meters for the first time this year.
 
The top two teams at all nine regional meets earn automatic bids to the NCAA Championships, which are set for Nov. 18 in Virginia. After the 18 auto-qualifiers are determined, another 13 men’s teams and 13 women’s teams are chosen based on a point system that rewards head-to-head wins during the season over teams in the field for nationals.
 
Washington’s men’s team is looking to secure a seventh-straight NCAA Championships bid, and the women’s team is aiming for a 17th-straight NCAA trip. Another notable streak is that the Huskies have won the individual men’s title at Regionals the past three times out, with Brian Fay winning last year, Kieran Lumb in 2021, and Andrew Jordan in 2019.
 
Surveying the ranked teams in the field, the Huskies are one spot behind No. 7 Stanford, which is the highest-ranked West Region women’s squad. Oregon is ranked 12th and Oregon State is 17th, followed by Cal Baptist at No. 21 and Portland at No. 30.
 
On the men’s side, Cal Baptist has jumped to the forefront in the region, sitting at No. 4 nationally. The Cardinal, who held off the Huskies for the Pac-12 title two weeks ago, are ranked 10th. Washington is 22nd and Oregon ranks 26th.
 
Just seven runners are allowed to race per team this week, down from the 10 of the Pac-12 Championships. Washington’s lineups are expected to be similar to two weeks ago at Chambers Creek. Both teams are traveling nine runners, with two serving as alternates.
 
The men are traveling James Crabtree, Leo Daschbach, Jamar Distel, Tyrone Gorze, Nathan Green, Luke Houser, Evan Jenkins, Ronan McMahon-Staggs, and Joe Waskom. The women will bring Ella Borsheim, Julia David-Smith, Chloe Foerster, Samantha Friborg, Tori Herman, Sophie O’Sullivan,