Meet Results
SALEM, Ore. (Oct. 1) -- Sophomore Nathan Minor (Mount Vernon) turned in arguably his best race of the 2011 season, and freshman teammate Ryan Thompson (Edmonds/Edmonds-Woodway HS) was not far behind in helping the Central Washington University men's cross country team to a 10th-place finish in the Cardinal Division of the 37th Annual Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational on Saturday at Bush's Pasture Park.
Minor, Thompson, and senior Manuel Santos (Yakima/A.C. Davis HS) all finished in the top 75 in their division -- in 48th, 61st, and 75th, respectively -- on the eight-kilometer course. The Wildcats finished ahead of five teams in their division, totaling 318 points. Chico State and Portland tied for the Cardinal Division men's title with 37 points each.
Minor's time of 25:52 translates to an approximate 5 minute, 12 second mile. It enabled him to be the fourth different Wildcat to rank as the team's top finisher in as many races this season, although he was Central's number two finisher at the Bozeman Runners Club/Montana State University Invitational on Sept. 17.
Thompson, meanwhile, was one of the Wildcats' top two finishers for the third time in as many collegiate meets. The true freshman was just 23 seconds behind Minor with a time of 26:15.
On the women's side, sophomore Connie Morgan (Hoquiam) led the way for the third time in her three meets this season. She was 77th overall in the five-kilometer race with a time of 19:19. Morgan was the only Wildcat to finish among the top 100 in the women's competition, as sophomore Taylor Kartes (Federal Way/Todd Beamer HS) was next in 112th place (20:06).
The Central Washington women finished in 16th place in the Cardinal Division, accumulating 457 points.
Central Washington will return to Washington state for the remainder of its competitions in 2011. Next week's competition, the Western Classic Invitational, will take place in Bellingham on Saturday, Oct. 8, while all three of their possible championship meets -- the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships, the NCAA Division II West Regional Championships, and the NCAA Division II National Championships -- will all be held in Washington.
