Sophomore Dana Morgan qualifiers for nationals with a strong performance
SPRINGFIELD, Ore. --- University of Portland sophomore Dana Morgan placed ninth and led the Pilots to a seventh-place finish at the 2007 NCAA West Regional Cross Country Championships hosted by Springfield Country Club on Saturday. With her effort, Morgan has automatically qualified for the NCAA Championship meet as an individual, while the Pilots will await a potential at-large bid.
Morgan posted a time of 20:41.40 at the 6K course to earn her third consecutive top 10 finish against elite competition. She has already secured her ticket to the championship meet by virtue of being one of the top four individuals not on an advancing team. Stanford (33) and Oregon (72) finished first and second, earning the region’s automatic NCAA bids. Stanford’s Teresa McWalters won the race with a time of 19:57.30, the only harrier to come in under 20 minutes.
Arizona State (106), Washington (118) and UC Santa Barbara (143) rounded out the top five, while Washington State (249) edged the Pilots (250) by a mere one point to finish sixth.
The Pilots entered the meet ranked ninth in the NCAA West Region according to the latest USTFCCCA poll.
Portland ran without No. 2 runner Amie Dahnke, who was bothered by a foot injury. Junior Sifrash Ademe (21:29.70, 42nd), freshman Paige Pattillo (21:41.50, 55th), junior Adrienne Nova (21:51.90, 69th) and senior Bobeya Krishnek (21:57.25, 75th) rounded out the Pilots’ scoring.
A total of 13 teams will earn at-large bids to the NCAA Championship and those teams will be announced on Sunday, Nov. 11. The championship meet is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 19 in Terre Haute, Ind.
2007 NCAA West Regional
Springfield Country Club (Springfield, Ore.)
November 10, 2007 – 10,000-meter (212 runners)
Team Results
1. Stanford (33)
2. Oregon (72)
3. Arizona State (106)
4. Washington (118)
5. UC Santa Barbara (143)
6. Washington State (249)
7. Portland (250)
8. UC Riverside (304)
9. California (328)
10. Long Beach State (334)
11. Arizona (352)
12. San Francisco (359)
13. Oregon State (375)
14. UC Irvine (382)
15. Loyola Marymount (387)
16. USC (391)
17. UC Davis (404)
18. Eastern Washington (485)
19. Idaho (506)
20. CS Fullerton (516)
21. Fresno State (538)
22. Santa Clara (588)
23. UCLA (597)
24. Cal Poly (621)
25. San Jose State (694)
26. UNLV (752)
27. Pepperdine (769)
28. Hawaii (801)
29. San Diego State (819)
30. Sacramento State (822)
31. Pacific (919)
Top Five Finishers
1. Teresa McWalters, Stanford (19:57.30)
2. Nicole Blood, Oregon (20:05.35)
3. Alex Gits, Stanford (20:23.40)
4. Anita Campbell, Washington (20:24.40)
5. Arianna Lambie, Stanford (20:31.25)
Portland Runners
9. Dana Morgan (20:41.40)
42. Sifrash Ademe (21:29.70)
55. Paige Pattillo (21:41.50)
69. Adrienne Nova (21:51.60)
75. Bobeya Krishnek (21:57.25)
89. Allison Ritchie (22:09.25)
99. Natalie Hemphill (22:20.30)
