MISSOULA, Mont. – Kyle Thompson's first place overall finish at the Montana Invitational led the Gonzaga men's cross country team to its third straight first place team finish to open the 2018 season.
The Zags placed eight runners inside the top 10 on the University of Montana Golf Course Friday. GU's top seven runners were all in the top eight finishers of the race.
Thompson crossed the line at 25:11.7, and he was followed by teammate
Ciaran O'Leary in second at 25:19.9.
Yacine Guermali placed fourth with a time of 25:24.0.
Bennett Gagnon (25:29.6) and
Andrew Clusserath (25:29.8) were fifth and sixth.
Kellen Manley (25:30.6) and
Stefan Bradley (25:32.2) were right behind in seventh and eighth.
Molly Foster led the GU women to a sixth place finish. The senior finished the 5K course with a time of 19:19.5. She placed 19
th in the 109-runner field. The top five Bulldog runners finished close together, as
Katherine Gustafson was not far behind at 19:27.8 in 25
th place.
Amanda Kiefer crossed the line at 19:38.3 in 30
th place, while
Claire Gillett (19:47.0) and
Kelly Gilbert (19:53.2) were 33
rd and 36
th.
The Idaho women swept the top three spots and placed first as a team. Kara Story was the overall winner with a time of 18:05.6. Teammates Andrea Condie (18:17.5) and Malaina Thacker (18:31.2) were second and third. The Vandals top five runners all placed in the top eight.
Gonzaga will split squads up between three events on Oct. 13. The Zag men will send runners to the NCAA Pre-Nationals in Madison, Wis., and the GU women will head to Sunnyvale, Calif., for the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational. The Bulldog men and women will also send a group of student-athletes to the Inland Empire Championships in Lewiston, Idaho.
