Meet ResultsSALEM, Ore. – For the first time in 38 years, the Northwest Conference men's cross country champion is from Pacific University.
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Tyler Shipley (Jr., Forest Grove, Ore.) rebounded from a disappointing meet two weeks ago to perform well in the meet where it performed most, crossing the line first at the Northwest Conference Cross Country Championships at Bush's Pasture Park. Shipley covered the 8,000-meter course in 25:44.8 to finish five seconds ahead of Willamette's Jacob Shafi.
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In the process, Shipley became the first Pacific men's cross country runner in 38 years, and only the second in school history, to win the conference title. Roger Hansen was the last to do it when he won the 1976 NWC Championships in a time of 25:09.8 at Portland's Pier Park.
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The victory finished off what has seemed like a natural progression for the Forest Grove native and Forest Grove High School graduate. Shipley finished 13th in his freshman season at the 2012 conference meet, which was hosted by Pacific at the Sunset Grove Golf Course. He was the runner-up in this meet last year. Combined with his four track and field titles in the 5,000 meters and 10,000 meters, Shipley has now won five NWC individual championships.
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Pacific head cross country coach
Brent Ericksen said that Shipley ran a very patience and succeeded in being able to run his type of race in the muddy, sloppy Bush Park course. "For about the first two miles it was a group of five guys and it was down to three at the three-mile mark. With 2,000 meters to go he took off and left everyone behind and with 1,000 meters he had a lead of 15-20 seconds and he looked and told me he had this one. It was great to see him have that kind of confidence."
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Shipley led the Pacific men to an eighth place finish in the men's team competition with a total of 208 points. Host Willamette claimed their third consecutive NWC team title with a score of 41 points.
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Stephenie Spencer (Fr., Bothell, Wash.) continued a solid freshman season, leading the Pacific women with a 23rd place finish with a time of 23:16.8. The time ranks as the fifth best in school history at the championship 6,000-meter distance.
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"Stephenie was a little bit more aggressive today," Ericksen said. She was able to run well with these girls despite the conditions."
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Spencer's performance led the Pacific women to an eighth place finish with a total of 231 points. The Boxers as a group were competitive, finishing just two points behind seventh place Pacific Lutheran. Willamette also claimed the women's title with a near perfect score of 16 points. Taylor Ostrander led a 1-2-3-4 finish for the Bearcats with her championship time of 22:25.2.
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Ericksen said overall he was pleased by the performance of the teams as they recovered from a flat performance at the Lewis & Clark Invitational two weeks ago. "Our kids competed so much better than two weeks ago," he said "It was a better effort to be more responsible of taking care of their performances. There is a lot more there, but we competed really well this weekend."
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Steve Allen (Svensen, Ore.) was the No. 2 runner for the Pacific men, placing 55th in a time of 28:01.2.Â
Logan Naegeli (Fr., Thompson Falls, Mont.) placed 60th in 28:14.2 while
Morgan Nichols (Fr., Portland, Ore.) was one place behind in a time of 28:21.2.Â
Kyle Eisenbeis (Fr., Bothell, Wash.) finished 68th in a time of 28:48.2.Â
Kaleb Bass (So., Slate Creek, Idaho) finished 76th in a time of 30:31.6 and
Tanner Boyle (Fr., St. Helens, Ore.) rounded out the Boxers with a 78th place finish in 31:22.2.
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Elaina Gillespie (So., Nampa, Idaho) was the No. 2 runner for the Pacific women, placing 49th in a time of 24:35.3.Â
Jessica Knoll (Fr., Arlee, Mont.) finished 64th in a time of 25:05.8.Â
Michelle Kester (Jr., Tacoma, Wash.) finished 71st in a time of 25:21.7 and
Mallory Hiefield (So., Portland, Ore.) rounded out the scoring five, placing 80th in 26:27.2.
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Pacific will return to Bush Park in two weeks to take part in the NCAA Division III West Regional Championships on Sat., Nov. 15.
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