Portland, Ore. -- The Pilot women's cross country team ran to third place as a squad at the West Coast Conference Championships at Fernhill Park. Laura Pellicoro and Courtney Klatt earned All-WCC First-Team Honors with their second and tenth place finishes, respectively.
Pellicoro led the Pilot squad, running a strong race from the front, sitting just behind the lead pack before ultimately picking off several athletes from other schools to ultimately finish second (19:50.7). Courtney Klatt finished second for the Pilots, running near the front of the race holding her position until ultimately finishing tenth (20:25.7). Pellicoro notched All-WCC recognition for her second time, while Klatt earned her first all-conference honors.
Mie Nielsen finished third for the Pilots, notching a 23rd place finish (21:10.0). She ran much of the race in the middle pack before moving up heavily in the last 2K. Claire Fagan finished closely behind Nielsen, closing on dozens of athletes over the last half of the race to finish 24th (21:13.7). The Pilot's fifth scorer was Sam Prusse who finished in 27th (21:15.6) after running a strong individual race from the middle of the pack.
Other Pilots to finish were Phoebe McKnight who finished 31st (21:23.2), Teresa Perez who crossed the line at 21:36.0, good for 32nd, Abby Lawrence in 51st (22:23.3), Stina Pettersson in 53rd (22:33.1) and Lauren Block in 60th (22:53.8).
No. 5 BYU continued to dominate at the WCC Championships, accumulating just 24 points, and were led by Aubrey Frentheway's first individual title in 19:47.2. They were followed by San Francisco, and Portland in third.
Coach Ian Solof said, "The team ran great today. I was really impressed with their toughness and how engaged they were. Laura was amazing, Sam had one of her best races ever, and Claire stepped up in a huge way to come through for the team. It was a great team performance and just what we needed as we head to the regional meet in two weeks."
The Pilots will be back in action at the NCAA West Regional Meet, to be held in Seattle, Wash. on Friday, November 11th.
Women's Team Results—6K
1. BYU - 30 pointsÂ
2. San Francisco - 65 pointsÂ
3. Portland - 77 pointsÂ
4. Gonzaga - 89 pointsÂ
5. Santa Clara - 125 pointsÂ
6. St. Mary's - 149 pointsÂ
7. Loyola Marymount - 245 pointsÂ
8. San Diego - 251 pointsÂ
9. Pepperdine - 263 points
10. Pacific - 300 pointsÂ
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Portland Individual Women
2. Laura Pellicoro* (19:50.7)
10. Courtney Klatt* (20:25.7)
23. Mie Nielsen (21:10.0)
24. Claire Fagan (21:13.7)
27. Sam Prusse (21:15.6)
31. Phoebe McKnight (21:23.2)
27. Teresa Perez (21:36.0)
35. Abby Lawrence (22:23.3)
53. Stina Pettersson (22:33.1)
60. Lauren Block (22:53.8)
* Top 10 Individuals All-WCC First Team
