SALEM, Ore. – After a week of rainy conditions in the Willamette Valley, the hilly course on Corban University's campus proved to be a challenge for the Corban and Bushnell University cross country teams on Saturday morning.
In the first meet hosted on Corban's campus since 2016, the Warriors performed admirably on their home course. Both Navy and Gold squads earned team victories at the conclusion of their respective races, with strong individual efforts from Robert Swoboda and Gracie Long paving the way.
To view the men's results, CLICK HERE.
To view the women's results, CLICK HERE.
Swoboda was in a league of his own during the men's race, claiming the individual title after clocking a time of 20:31.3, nearly 40 seconds ahead of the runner-up finisher (Bushnell's Jacob Lackey, 21:10.1).
James Busch built off his impressive fall debut with another strong performance on Saturday, placing third overall with a time of 21:14.4, freshman Samuel Alvarez crossed the finish line just behind him at the 21:18.2 mark.
Ketner Mizee (21:20.4) and Hunter Bensman (22:36.6) were Corban's final two placers, turning in integral performances towards the Warriors' team victory.
For the Corban women, the team victory was particularly encouraging given the fact that star harrier Sydney Nichol was unavailable on Saturday.
Long stepped up in a big way, registering a time of 15:54.9 to land in second place and serve as the Warriors' top scorer. Bushnell's Tea Chatelain was the individual winner of the event, clocking a blistering 15:38.5 mark in the cold and wet conditions.
Fellow Beacon Rebecca Kuskie placed third (16:27.0), but the Navy and Gold clinched spots four through eight in the final leaderboard, limiting the squad's scoring spread to just 1:49.
Kira Bowers (16:48.5) continued her strong start to the 2020-21 season by finishing fourth, while Gemma LaVergne impressed in her Navy and Gold debut by notching a time of 17:02.5 (fifth place).
From there, it was Samantha Dara (17:35.5, sixth place) and Anne Morud (17:44.1, seventh place) who rounded out Corban's top-five.
It won't be long until the Warriors and Beacons meet again, as Corban's next competition will be the Bushnell Invitational on January 29 in Cottage Grove, Ore.