Mills Named WCC Runner of the Month
11/5/2015 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
SAN BRUNO, Calif. â€" Gonzaga women's cross country's Shelby Mills was named the West Coast Conference Runner of the Month Thursday.
Mills led the Gonzaga women to their first WCC title in 20 years with a first place individual finish at the conference championships. She became only the second GU runner to ever win a WCC cross country title. Cheska Fairbanks was the last in 1996.
"I'm really proud of Shelby," Gonzaga women's Head Coach Patty Ley said. "She has worked really hard to rise to this level and this is a nice affirmation!"
Mills led for the entirety of the race by a large margin. She created a gap from the 82-runner field and coasted to the title with a time of 20:55.7. The senior had an average mile of 5:36.6 and an average kilometer of 3:29.3. Loyola Marymount's Danielle Shanahan finished second at 21:06.4, a 10.7 second gap from Mills.
Earlier in the month, Mills ran a 20:54.9 at the Washington Invitational. She also placed third at the Inland Empire Challenge.
The Zags, ranked a program-best fifth in the West Region and 30th in the country, run in the NCAA West Regionals on Nov. 13. The races return to the Jefferson Golf Course in Seattle, Wash., where the Zag women placed sixth at the Washington Invitational earlier this season.
