#18/RV Gonzaga at Whitman Invitational
SATURDAY, OCT. 5 | VETERANS MEMORIAL GOLF COURSE | WALLA WALLA, WASH.
11:00 AM PT (W) / 11:30 AM PT (M)
LIVE RESULTS
STARTING LINES
- No. 18 women's cross country will make their first-ever appearance at the Whitman Invitational in Walla Walla, Wash. on Saturday. The meet will take place on Veterans Memorial Golf Course.
- The Zag women are coming off their highest-ever placement at the Nuttycombe Invitational.Â
- Gonzaga placed eighth at Nuttycombe behind
Rosina Machu's third place individual finish, defeating four nationally-ranked programs including No. 4 Oregon.
- In the latest USTFCCCA polls, the GU women rank third in the West Region and 18th nationally.
- RV men's cross country will compete in the Whitman Invitational for the second-straight season.
- Last year, the Zag men won the Whitman Invitational with 19 team points. Eight of the top ten finishers were Gonzaga-affiliated runners, both unattached and attached.
- The GU men are coming off a 17th place team finish at Nuttycombe, their highest since 2021.
- In the latest USTFCCCA polls, the GU men are sixth in the West Region and receiving votes nationally.
- In FloTrack's latest rankings, Gonzaga ranks 16th on the women's side and 29th on the men's side.
ABOUT THE COURSE
- Veterans Memorial Golf Course is a public municipal course located just North of Highway 12 in Walla Walla, playing host to many collegiate events in both golf and cross country. The racing course consists of a 2K loop that is mostly flat with a few hills, starting and ending on the golf course's 17th hole.Â
THE LATEST POLLS
- Gonzaga women's cross country moved up five spots to No. 18 in the latest USTFCCCA National Coaches' Poll on Tuesday, marking their highest ranking in program history.
- FloTrack ranks the Gonzaga women at No. 16 in the country, according to their latest poll.
Rosina Machu is ranked tenth nationally in FloTrack's individual rankings.
- After opening the season at No. 30, the Zag men are receiving votes in the latest USTFCCCA national poll. FloTrack has GU ranked at No. 29 in their latest national team rankings.
- The GU women moved up to No. 3 in the USTFCCCA West Region poll this week, while the Zag men held steady at No. 6.
MACHU EARNS WCC RUNNER OF THE WEEK
- After placing third at the Nuttycombe Invitational in 20:06.2 last weekend,
Rosina Machu was named the West Coast Conference Female Runner of the Week on Tuesday.
- Machu led the then No. 23 Zag women to their highest-ever finish at Nuttycombe, placing eighth as a team while knocking off four ranked teams.
- The honor marks Machu's fourth Runner of the Week of her career, earning three nods during the 2023 season.
NEXT UP
- The Gonzaga men will be the lone team in action next week as they travel to Springfield, Ore., for the Bill Dellinger Invitational on Oct. 11. All of the action will be streamed on RunnerSpace.com with live stats available at www.GoZags.com.
CLIMBING IN THE POLLS
- The Gonzaga women moved up five spots in the latest USTFCCCA National Coaches' Poll to No. 18, marking their highest team ranking in program history. Their previous high of No. 21 came in the Week 2 poll of 2022.
- In the West Region, the Zag women now rank third, which ties their highest-ever ranking in that poll (Week 6 of 2021).
HISTORY MADE AT NUTTYCOMBE
- No. 23 Gonzaga women's cross country earned their highest team finish at the Nuttycombe Invitational on Sept. 27.
- GU placed eighth behind
Rosina Machu, who placed third to mark the highest individual finish in program history at that meet.
- Amidst the Bulldog women's eighth place finish were wins against No. 4 Oregon, No. 13 Lipscomb, No. 16 Virginia, and No. 22 Boston College.
- On the men's side, RV Gonzaga placed 17th to mark their highest team finish at Nuttycombe since 2021.
- The Zag men defeated three nationally-ranked teams in No. 23 Iona, No. 25 Montana State, and No. 29 Tulsa.
ZAG WOMEN SECURE COUGAR CLASSIC TITLE
- The No. 25 Gonzaga women's cross country team brought an incomplete squad to the Cougar Classic on Sept. 13 and took home the team title, backed by four top-ten finishes including a second-place finish from freshman
Logan Hofstee.
- Gonzaga scored 39 points, finishing ten points ahead of Boise State (49 points).
- The win marked the Bulldogs' first since 2021, alternating first and second place finishes in 2019, 2021, 2023, and 2024.
- Hofstee's second-place was the highest since
Kristen Garcia and Claire Manley won back-to-back titles in 2019 and 2021.
ANOTHER NOTABLE ZAG DEBUT
- GU women's cross country's Logan Hoftsee placed second in her collegiate debut at the Cougar Classic on Sept. 13.
- Since 2021, a Gonzaga woman has placed first or second in her team debut race on three separate occasions.
- In 2021,
Sadie Tuckwood won the Clash of the Inland Northwest in her first race. In 2023,
Jessica Frydenlund was the Clash of the Inland Northwest champion, also winning her Gonzaga debut.
ANOTHER CLASH SWEEP
- Gonzaga opened their season on Aug. 30 at the Clash of the Inland Northwest on Eastern Washington's campus.
- For the second straight season, the program swept both individual and team titles in commanding fashion.
-
Jade Rypkema led the Zag women to a perfect score of 15 with her first collegiate individual win.
- The women have now won four team titles in five years, while the men have secured eight straight team titles.
PRESEASON HONORS AND RANKINGS
- The Gonzaga men and women were picked as favorites to win the West Coast Conference on Aug. 23. In addition, eight combined athletes were selected to the preseason team.
- The Zag women received seven first-place votes and 76 points to top the women's WCC preseason poll. The men tied with Portland at 46 points and five first-place votes.
- In the USTFCCCA West Region preseason coaches' poll, the Gonzaga women came in at No. 4 while the men came in at No. 6.
- For the sixth straight season, the Gonzaga men appeared in the first USTFCCCA National Coaches' poll of the season. This year, they will open the season ranked No. 30.
- The Gonzaga women appeared in the preseason USTFCCCA National Coaches' poll for the second time in the last three seasons, coming in at No. 25 to open their 2024 campaign.
2023 SEASON RECAP
- The men won six team titles throughout the 2023 season, including their first ever West Coast Conference title.
- Smith, Kolodge, and
Bryce Cerkowniak earned USTFCCCA All-West Region honors at the NCAA West Regionals.
- After securing the WCC title, the men placed second at the NCAA West Regional, knocking off three ranked teams.
- After earning their second-straight automatic bid to the NCAA Championships, the men placed 28th at nationals.
- The women won four team titles and collected five individual titles throughout the season.
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Rosina Machu won individual titles at the Lakefront Invitational, Bronco Invitational, and WCC Championships.
- Machu and Tuckwood earned USTFCCCA All-West Region honors at the NCAA West Regionals.
- Machu became just the second female USTFCCCA All-American in program history, placing 16th at nationals.
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