The Chuck Bowles Invite this past weekend in Salem, Ore. proved to be a very successful outing for both the Logger men and women on the cross country course. The Puget Sound men took 19th overall in the invite, with an average time of 26:59.03. The men finished ahead of three Northwest Conference rivals at the large race, upending Pacific Lutheran, Pacific University, and George Fox who took 20th, 21st, and 22nd respectively. The University of Portland took home the title on the men’s side, posting an excellent average time of 23:37.71 in the 8k race.
The women also managed to perform well against conference opponents in the invitational, beating Pacific Lutheran, Pacific University, and George Fox as well en route to a 19th pace finish of their own. The women posted an average time of 19:48.79 in their 5k race; a finish which barely fell short of matching 17th place Linfield’s average mark of 19:40.02. The University of Idaho took home first place honors in the women’s race as they averaged a time of 17:50.19. Whitworth University, a fellow Northwest Conference opponent did extremely well in the women’s standings, turning in a 7th place finish after recording an average time of 18:37.78.
Several Loggers posted excellent times this past weekend. Freshman Robert Harkins (Eureka, Calif.) earned himself a spot on the all-time top 25 times list after finishing the 8k 70th overall with a time of 25:31.21. We Finger and Matt Kline also recorded personal bests for the Loggers with times of 26:33.43 and 27:30.46 respectively. Hayley Walkers was the top performer for the women’s team, finishing 65th overall with a time of 18:42.58.
After a successful trip to Salem, the Loggers will return home for the Pacific Lutheran Invitational in Parkland this week. Undoubtedly, the accomplishments of Puget Sound’s runners will give the teams some added confidence as they square off directly against conference opponents in their next outing.