FRESNO, Calif.—It has been quite a journey for Concordia’s Jori Paradis, all the way to the finish line of the 2023 Pacific West Conference Cross Country Championship.

Paradis broke away from the pack late in the race and cruised to the title with a 6 kilometer time of 20:51. Her teammate Porshe Eismann was second in 20:58. It was enough to place the Golden Eagles second, behind defending champion Biola.

Biola is the first PacWest team to win back-to-back titles since 2017. They finished with 40 points, with CUI next at 51, followed by Azusa Pacific with 63.

But back to Paradis. The 5^th-year senior crossed the line seventh last year to earn All-PacWest honors. In 2021, she was 200 feet from the finish line at the race in Hawaii when she passed out from the heat and wasn’t able to finish.

So to say this has been a journey to get to the 2023 championship trophy is very real.

“It has been my goal from the start of the season to win this race,” she said right after the finish at Fresno’s Woodward Park. "It took me awhile to get here, part of that has been mental to work through what happened to me in Hawaii. To get back to the point os being confident has been a process.

“You have to know your why,” Paradis continued. “It’s not all for myself. It’s for our program. It’s running for God. I am proud of who we are and were we can continue go to.”

Next they will go to the NCAA West Regional Championship in Monmouth, Oregon on November 4. "We want to make our mark and continue to let people know who we are." 

Biola won the title again by placing five runners in the top 15, all under 22 minutes. Bethany Mapes was third (21:01), Susi Bruennig was fourth (21:04), defending champ Lynette Ruiz was sixth (21:19), Britta Holmberg was 12^th (21:45) and Karis Brown was 15^th (21:54).

"I was proud of the women today, and their ability to step up and defend their title, said Biola head coach Sean Henning. "We tried not to focus on any other team, but to focus on executing our best race as a form of worship to the Lord.

"Statistically, this was a pretty average day for our women, some really strong performances, but also some off days. Regardless, they stepped up and got the job done as a team. that’s why every girl is valuable in this program, and everyone has a role in our success. The ladies will celebrate this victory, then continue the journey they are on this season."

The top seven  runners earn First Team All-PacWest honors. In addition to the above Biola and Concordia runners, Azusa Pacific placed Justine Stecko in fifth (21:09) and Sofia Camacho in seventh (21:34).

To see the complete results, go to the Championships page by clicking here.