Press Release
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HIGHLIGHTS:
* Recent Events: Men 2nd, Women 3rd at Wes Cook Bear Fete Invitational
* Coming Up: Bruins Entered in Huge Charles Bowles Invitational
* Ware, Giffey-Brohaugh HM for NWC Runner Honors Again
* Bruin Men 8th in Latest USTFCCCA Regional Rankings
* Personal Bests: Seven Bruins Have Established New Marks This Fall
RECENT EVENTS: Men 2nd, Women 3rd at Wes Cook Bear Fete Invitational
* Sept. 22 - Wes Cook Bear Fete Invitational at Willamette Mission State Park, Brooks, Ore.
--- Men - 2nd of 7 / Women - 3rd of 6
Press Release / Results (M) / Results (W)
COMING UP: Bruins Entered in Huge Charles Bowles Invitational
Sat., Sept. 29 - Charles Bowles Invitational at Bush's Pasture Park, Salem, Ore.
--- 9:00 a.m. - Men's 8K Cardinal / 9:45 a.m. - Women's 5K Cardinal
With some 1,352 entries in six different races this Saturday, the Charles Bowles Invitational at Bush's Pasture Park in Salem, Ore., is one of the largest cross country events in the nation, and the George Fox teams will be a part of it once again.
This year's event featured a "Cardinal" section for small college teams, a "Gold" division for NCAA major colleges, and two new races for high school teams. The Bruins will participate in the "Cardinal" races, with the men's 8K race at 9:00 a.m. and the women's 5K race at 9:45 a.m.
Nationally-ranked teams the Bruins will be up against in the men's race include Willamette (D-III 10th), St. John's University MN (D-III 5th), the University of Alaska-Anchorage (D-II 19th), Aquinas College (NAIA 2nd), Lewis-Clark State College (NAIA 19th), Concordia University-Irvine (NAIA 7th), and Eastern Oregon University (NAIA 9th).
In the women's race, the Bruins will compete against such ranked teams as Willamette (D-III 11th), Puget Sound (D-III 20th), the University of British Columbia (NAIA 8th), Concordia-Irvine (NAIA 13th), Aquinas (NAIA 14th), Point Loma Nazarene University (NAIA 15th), Lewis-Clark State (NAIA 16th), and Northwest University (NAIA 28th).
THE COACHES:
Head coach John Smith (George Fox '96) is in his second year as the head coach of all George Fox track and field and cross country programs. After eight years as an assistant, he took over in the summer of 2006 upon the retirement of 19-year veteran coach Wes Cook. Smith was a two-time NAIA All-American in the decathlon for the Bruins and still holds the GFU decathlon record (7,138 points). Click here for the complete bio on Coach Smith.
One of John Smith's first acts as the new head coach of the George Fox cross country and track and field programs was to name Mike Hickey (Washington State '98) as associate head coach for cross country. Hickey, now in his second year at George Fox, was head cross country and assistant track coach at Clackmas Community College (1998-2001) and an assistant in both sports at Portland State University (2001-2005) prior to joining the Bruins. Click here for the complete bio on Coach Hickey.
BRUIN BITS:
* Ware, Giffey-Brohaugh HM for NWC Runner Honors Again
Jordan Ware, for the second week in a row, and Rachel Giffey-Brohaugh, for the third time, received honorable mention for Northwest Conference Runners of the Week for Sept. 17-23 after their showings in the Wes Cook Bear Fete Invitational on Sept. 22 at Willamette Mission State Park in Brooks, Ore.
Ware posted the best time for the Bruins with a 26:18.6 in the 8K race, placing 8th overall and 8th for team scoring. His run led the Bruins to a 2nd-place finish out of seven teams in their own home event.
In the women's 6K race, Giffey-Brohaugh placed 8th overall and 8th for team scoring with a time of 23:11.5. The Bruin women came in 3rd out of six teams in the event.
* 2007 Honors:
- Paul Rapet
Bruin Athletic Association Men's Athlete of the Week (Aug. 27-Sept. 2)
NWC Men's Runner of the Week (HM, Aug. 27-Sept. 2)
- Rachel Giffey-Brohaugh
Bruin Athletic Association Women's Athlete of the Week (Aug. 27-Sept. 2)
NWC Women's Runner of the Week (HM, Aug. 27-Sept. 2; HM, Sept. 10-16; HM, Sept. 17-23)
- Jordan Ware
NWC Men's Runner of the Week (HM, Sept. 10-16; HM, Sept. 17-23)
* Bruin Men 8th in Latest USTFCCCA Regional Rankings
In the latest rankings of NCAA Division III cross country teams by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) of Sept. 25, the George Fox men were 8th in the West Region, the same spot they held in the pre-season rankings, while the Bruin women slipped from a pre-season 6th place out of the top 10.
The top 10 men's teams in the West are Willamette University (10th nationally), Colorado College (24th), Occidental College (32nd), Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, Linfield College, Whitworth University, the University of Puget Sound, George Fox, Whitman College, and Pomona-Pitzer Colleges.
For complete national and regional rankings, visit the USTFCCCA web site.
* Personal Bests: Bruins Have Established New Marks This Fall
Several Bruins have established new personal records with their times in the first two races of the season.
Among the returning Bruin men, new times in the 8K have been posted by Grant Finney (26:22.36 in the Bear Fete Invitational), Adam Haldorson (29:22 in the Sundodger Invitational), and Jordan Ware (26:04 in the Sundodger Invitational). The Bruins' two freshmen set their college standards in the Sundodger Invitational, Bradley Higgins (27:02) and Clayton Pugsley (30:46).
The only new marks for the Bruin women in the 6K this year have been set by the team's newest members. Sarah Curry ran a 24:52 in the Sundodger Invitational, while Nicole Fleming posted a 25:17.20 in the Wes Cook Bear Fete Invitational.