Cross Country Takes Top DII Honors

Westmont men’s and women’s cross country competed at The Master’s Invitational in Santa Clarita on October 3 with the men finishing as the top NCAA Division II team in the field. 

The men, who scored 107 points to claim third place among 17 teams, were led by freshman Phillip Contakes who placed 10th with a time of 25:04 on the 8,000-meter course. They were followed by sophomore Kaeden Anderson (27th, 25:40), freshman Blake Holtermann (29th, 25:43), sophomore William Covington (30th, 25:48), and senior Tyler Allan (31st, 25:48). “The 44-second team spread for the top five scores was the best performance of the season thus far,” says head coach Russell Smelley. “It was a promising overall team performance looking ahead to the PacWest Championships on November 8 at Jessup.”

The women, competing in a 6,000-meter race, placed sixth out of 19 teams, and third among five DII programs with 182 points. Freshman Sofia Hernandez paced the squad with a 12th-place finish in 22:26. Rounding out the top five scorers were freshman Ruby Savage (28th, 23:00), sophomore Lucie Pickering Pick (49th, 23:46), freshman Leia Larson (23:54), and senior Adalyn Rodriguez (23:55).

Both Warrior teams return to action on Friday, October 9, at the San Francisco State Invitational in Golden Gate Park.