SALEM, Ore. - The College of Idaho women placed third and the men finished fourth Saturday at the 51st Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational, with both Yote squads finishing ahead of NCAA Division I programs in fields of 25 and 23 teams.
The CI women scored 86 points behind Hawaii (65) and Portland (70), finishing ahead of Fresno State (103) and Nevada (151). Senior Kylee Quinton led the Yotes, placing fifth overall in 17:25.6 over the 5,000-meter course. Portland freshman Latham West won the race in 16:35.1.
CI's next three runners crossed within 1.6 seconds of each other. Senior Rozzlyn Cazier was 15th in 18:01.5, freshman Talia Bonville was 17th in 18:02.9 and senior Julia Gilbert was 19th in 18:03.1. Sophomore Paiten Braseth rounded out the scoring in 31st at 18:23.0, and sophomore Josie Patton (35th, 18:27.8) and freshman Josie Roy (37th, 18:29.2) completed the top seven.
The CI men finished one point behind Southern Oregon for third, 132 to 131. Portland won the team title with 46 points, and Nevada was second with 60. Nevada junior Austin Key won the 8,000-meter race in 23:59.1.
The Yotes relied on depth rather than a front-runner. Sophomore Matt Wilde led CI in 21st place at 24:43.6, and the top five finished within 18.6 seconds. Junior Isaac Anttonen was 23rd in 24:52.7, freshman Emiliano Diaz-Garcia was 24th in 24:53.2, freshman Austin Riley was 35th in 24:58.6 and senior Oclan Ryan was 39th in 25:02.2.
Southern Oregon put three runners in the top eight, but its fifth scorer placed 92nd. CI's sixth and seventh runners, senior Casey Crumley (40th, 25:02.5) and sophomore Everett Metier (42nd, 25:02.8), finished within a second of Ryan.
