COLFAX, Wash. – Racing with an incomplete squad didn't matter on Friday as No. 25 Gonzaga women's cross country took home the team title at the Cougar Classic at the Colfax Golf Course. The Zag women knocked off a Boise State team also receiving attention in the USTFCCCA national poll on their way to just their second team win at the Cougar Classic and first since 2021.
Also racing with an incomplete squad, the No. 30 Gonzaga men fell just four points shy in the 8K race, placing third with 64 points in a close finish that saw Boise State earn the win with 60 points while Washington State placed second with 62.
Logan Hofstee made her Gonzaga debut on Friday and immediately found the front of the pack with teammate
Jessica Frydenlund. Also in the mix was Washington State's Zenah Cheptoo, who would eventually pull away in the final kilometer for the individual win at 20:03.98. Hofstee finished second in 20:08.3 to earn the sixth-fastest 6K time in program history.
Frydenlund also placed in the top five, finishing fifth in 20:34.9 while
Keira Saavedra (ninth, 20:48.3),
Anna Grabowski (tenth, 20:56.2), and
Sadie Tuckwood (13th, 21:08.6) all contributed to Gonzaga's 39 team points. Boise State finished second with 49 team points and Washington State finished third with 50 team points.
While the men's 8K was close on the team leaderboard, Washington State's Evans Kurui dominated from start to finish as he earned nearly a 50-second win, crossing the finish line in 22:46.8.
Mason Kissell was the highest-placing Zag at eighth with a 24:07.3 finish.
Behind Kissell was
Ryan Mitchell (11th, 24:12.9),
Will Thorsett (14th, 24:19.6),
Jacob Alfonso (15th, 24:20.3), and
Ansel Tucker (21st, 24:27.1), each contributing to the 64 team points for the Bulldogs.
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The nationally-ranked Zags will now gear up for the Nuttycombe Invitational on Sept. 27 in Madison, Wis., where the top harriers from both teams will get their first look at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course. Gonzaga will look to return to Madison in November for the NCAA Championships.
Full results of the Cougar Classic can be found
HERE.
