BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Central Washington Cross Country placed 10^th at the Bill Roe Classic on Saturday morning. Steiner Christensen led the 'Cats, finishing the 8K in 14^th with a time of 25:34.5.

QUOTING HEAD COACH JONATHAN HILL
"The Women started today and performed wonderfully. We competed today with the confidence of a group entering the back half of our season. It's clear we are gaining experience every time we step on the course and our improved times prove the work is paying off. We have a terrific pack right now that is preparing to move up the conference rankings as a unit.

Lauren Thompson led our crew again today and is showing glimpses of brilliance we know she possesses. She's a tough one and never appears to be rattled. Following Lauren are two super freshmen, Hannah Mikkelsen and Camryn Holterhoff. These two broke out this weekend, ran together and finished strong! The smiles on their faces told the story."

Beatrice had an awesome race today too. Hannah Koivisto and Nicole Yanasak had huge breakthroughs as well on a tough, hilly course. I'm so proud of their resiliency and commitment to the long game. We are headed in the right direction!

Back-to-back meets for the men, on top of some hard training weeks, had us a little shorthanded today. That challenge today put the spotlight on Steiner Christensen, and he responded in a BIG way. We put the pressure on him to lead our team today and he did just that. He's a big part of this group's success.

Colin Hitchcock has put together two great weeks of competing and training. Max Hutton took the leap forward we've been waiting for. He has so much talent, with virtually no experience racing 8,000 meters. In time, he's going to be a factor. Jack Pratapas was our #4 and looks stronger and stronger each week. He is super steady and has a calm, mature, composed nature that helps keep the group grounded. Again, I like where we're at and love where we're headed."

RACE RESULTS
Steiner Christensen led the 'Cats and placed 14^th with a time of 25:34.5. Colin Hitchcock finished with a time of 27:00.8 and Max Hutton completed the 8K in 27:11.0.
 
Lauren Thompson was the top Cat for the women in the 6K with a time of 25:06.8. Hannah Mikkelsen was just eleven seconds behind Thompson 25:17.6 and Camryn Holterhoff completed the course in 25:28.8.

UP NEXT
The Wildcats have a week off before heading to Seattle on October 7^th for the Emerald City XC Open at Lower Woodland Park. This will be the 'Cats final race before the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships on October 21^st.