INDEPENDENCE, Ore. – Eastern Oregon men's and women's cross country closed out the regular season with record-breaking performances at the George Oja Invitational on Saturday morning.
Competing on the Oak Knoll Golf Course, the same venue that will host the upcoming Cascade Collegiate Conference Championships, both Mountaineer squads turned in historic efforts, setting new school records for team times.
The EOU women stole the show, shattering their previous 6k school record which had been established at last year's NAIA National Championships. This year's group ran nearly four minutes faster, and each of the top six Mounties ran faster than the number one finisher from Nationals in 2024.
Leading the charge was
Riley Morris, who came within 1.8 seconds of breaking the all-time EOU 6k record set by program legend Karlee Coffey, finishing in an outstanding 21:30.8. Right behind her,
Kaleah Hines clocked the third-fastest 6k in school history with a time of 22:18.6, while
Kiah Carlson,
Mattie Woodbury, and
Taylor Redick all added their names to the record books, running the eighth, tenth, and eleventh fastest times in program history, respectively. The women finished seventh overall with 242 points and were the top NAIA team in a competitive field.
Not to be outdone, the Mountaineer men also delivered a historic performance, breaking the school record for the 8k that had stood since 2003, the same year that EOU finished second at Nationals. This year's squad combined for a total more than 20 seconds faster than that storied team.
Thomas Ogden once again led the way for the Mounties, posting a time of 24:07.0, the fourth-fastest 8k in school history.
Grady Greenwood followed close behind with the eighth-best time ever at 24:18.6, while
Trevor Nichols and
James Thatcher also cracked the program's top 25, finishing in 24:48.7 and 24:56.0, respectively. Rounding out the top five was
Hunter Marlatt in 25:05.7, helping the men secure a third-place finish with 136 points. The Mountaineers also claimed the distinction of being the top NAIA team in the race, beating out several nationally ranked programs.
Eastern Oregon will now carry some serious momentum going into the CCC Championships. The race is set for the same course in Independence, Oregon on Friday, November 7.
