SPOKANE, Wash. – Eastern Oregon University Cross Country closed out the regular season in impressive fashion at the Tyson Invitational, hosted by Gonzaga, with both teams delivering strong performances against a competitive field of NCAA and NAIA programs. The No. 19-ranked women finished fifth overall and first among NAIA teams, while the No. 22-ranked men claimed second place behind host Gonzaga.
The women scored 111 points to secure fifth place, finishing behind NCAA Division I programs Gonzaga and Washington State, as well as Division II programs Central Washington and Seattle Pacific. Mia Bieghtol led the Mountaineers, crossing the finish line in 21:49.0 to place 11th overall, lead all NAIA runners, and move to No. 2 on EOU's all-time 6K performance list.
Megan Poler followed with a 21st-place finish in 22:25.7, moving to No. 5 in program history, while
Taylor Redick placed 26th in 22:42.8 to rank No. 10.
Kiah Carlson finished 30th in 23:17.9, and
Ashlee Scheel rounded out the Mountaineers' top five with a 34th-place finish in 23:25.2, ranking No. 18 in program history.
Addison Defoort, Malia Mamoulelis, and Kenndy Taylor also earned spots in EOU's all-time top 25.
The women's top five combined for a time of 1:53:41, establishing the No. 2 time in program history for a 6K race. The record-setting performance capped a strong regular season for the Mountaineers as they turn their focus to postseason competition.
On the men's side, Eastern Oregon continued its strong campaign with a second-place finish and 61 points, trailing only Gonzaga. The Mountaineers' top five combined for a time of 2:05:19, recording the No. 9 time in program history for an 8K race.
Grady Greenwood once again paced the Mountaineers, finishing ninth overall in 24:50.7 as the first NAIA runner across the line.
Trevor Nichols followed in 13th in 24:54.4, while
Miguel Fuentes placed 17th in 25:07.4.
Wyatt Jacobson finished just behind him in 18th at 25:07.5, and
Diego Zambrano rounded out the scoring five in 22nd with a time of 25:18.4. Fuentes, Jacobson, and Zambrano also combined to form the fastest freshman trio in program history.
With the regular season complete, the Mountaineers head into the postseason with momentum, highlighted by a record-setting team performance from the women and a runner-up finish from the men. Eastern Oregon will look to build on those results at the Cascade Collegiate Conference Championship on Nov. 6 in Lewiston, Idaho.
