Whitworth Men Finish in Fifth Place

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Dana Misterek raced to a fourth place finish to lead the Whitworth University women to a strong third place finish in the Open Division at the University of Washington Sundodger Invitational on Saturday afternoon. Despite missing their top runner, the Pirate men posted a strong fifth place finish.

Dana Misterek

Misterek ran the six kilometer course in 21:51.48. Natasha Wodak, running unattached, won with a time of 21:02.83.

Tonya Turner was 21st in 22:38.09, while Joy Shufeldt was 35th in 23:10.27. Kaitlin Hildebrand (23:30.23) and Kathryn Williams (23:33.81) finished in 45th and 46th places, respectively.

NCAA Division II Alaska Anchorage won with a score of 22, while NAIA power Simon Fraser was second with 60 points. Whitworth was third with 127 points, the best showing ever for the Pirate women at the meet. There were 18 women's teams running and the next highest NCAA DIII finish was by Lewis & Clark College in 6th place.

The Whitworth men finished fifth with 161 points, despite missing NCAA Division III West Regional defending champion Nick Gallagher. Again, the Pirates were the top NCAA DIII team in the field, with Lewis & Clark taking 8th on the men's side. NAIA British Columbia was first with 89 points and NCAA DII Academy of Art was second with 119.

The Bucs finished in a tight group. Aaron Jenkins was 28th in 25:49.81, while Trevor Berrian was 32nd in 26:01.30. Tyler Dudley took 34th with a time of 26:05.76. Dusty Caseria (26:19.10) was 38th, followed by Collin Stewart (26:22.79) in 40th place.

Amos Maru of Academy of Art won the 8 kilometer race with a time of 24:52.34.

Women's Results / Men's Results

Next week Whitworth will stay in Spokane to run at the CC of Spokane Runner's Soul / Erik Anderson Invitational at Plantes Ferry Park.