EUGENE, Ore. – In her Gonzaga debut, Kristen Garcia led the Zag women's cross country team to a fourth-place finish, with her 15^th-place individual finish at the Oregon XC Invitational Friday. It was the season-opener for GU.
 
Garcia crossed the line at 17:32.1, the eighth-fastest time over a 5,000-meter course in program history. She was in 15^th at the halfway point of 2,500 meters at8:53.5.
 
Liz Hogan was 21^st with a time of 17:46.1. Claire Manley (18:01.6) and Ally Legard (18:03.7) were 27^th and 29^th. Claire Gillett (18:07.5) and Lauren Haas (18:13.0) placed 31^st and 34^th.
 
Rounding out the Gonzaga finishes were Makenna Edwards (18:29.2, 37^th), Alicia Anderson (18:33.9, 38^th), Paxton Depoe (18:36.0, 39^th) and Brittney Hansen (18:55.1, 41^st).
 
Portland took the team title, placing its top five runners in the Top-10. Anna Pataki led the Pilots with a fourth-place finish at 17:00.3. San Francisco was second as a team, followed by Oregon State, Gonzaga and Oregon.
 
Unattached runner Carmela Cardama Baez was the first-place finisher at 16:41.0. Oregon State's Kaylee Mitchell was the top collegiate finisher in second at 16:51.2.
 
The next scheduled event for the Bulldogs is the West Coast Conference Championships in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Feb. 24.