MONMOUTH, Ore.--Regional bragging rights and trips to the NCAA National Championships will be on the line this Saturday (Nov. 4) at the NCAA West Region Cross Country Championships at Ash Creek Preserve on the campus of Western Oregon University. 

Nearly every school from the Pacific West Conference will race, with the women's 6K starting at 10 a.m. and the men's 10K beginning at 11:15. You can follow the Live Results here.

Teams from the PacWest, the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) and the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) will toe the line on the flat, mostly grass course. The top three teams in each race automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships in Joplin, Missouri (Nov. 18) and ten at-large teams from across the country will also be chosen. The top five runners in Saturday's race that are not on the top three teams will also qualify for a trip to Missouri.

In the women's race, Biola looks to be in the championship trophy mix. Winner of back-to-back PacWest titles, the Eagles are currently ranked second in the west region (13th nationally). The only team ahead of them on paper is Western Washington, just one slot above at No. 1 in the region and 12th nationally. Concordia is fourth in the region (behind Chico State) and Azusa Pacific is fifth, giving the PacWest three of the top five teams.

Biola sophomore Bethany Mapes, who finished third at the PacWest Championships two weeks ago in Fresno, placed eighth at the West Regional last year in Montana as a freshman. In Fresno, a pair of Concordia runners took the top two spots--Jori Paradis and Porshe Eismann. That duo is poised again to be among the very top runners in Monmouth. 

Chico State won the CCAA team title two weeks ago and Western Washington was the GNAC crown winner at their conference championships.

Last year, University of Alaska runners Naomi Bailey and Kendall Kramer went 1-2 in Montana. Both return this year for the Nanooks. On the team front in 2022, Stanislaus State and Chico went first and second, with Biola coming in third. Azusa Pacific was fifth in 2022.

For the men, everyone will be pointing towards Chico State as usual. The Wildcats, the defending west region champ, just won their 21st consecutive CCAA championship. They are ranked No. 1 in the west region and No. 8 nationally.

Azusa Pacific, the PacWest champion, will challenge the Wildcats. The Cougars are No. 2 in the region and No. 10 nationally. APU sprinted to the PacWest title in Fresno with a blistering 25 points. 

Biola's Jerry Baltzer was the individual winner at the PacWest meet and will be among the leaders on Saturday. Defending region champ Cole Nash of Alaska Anchorage returns, as does Fresno Pacific's Bryan Banuelos, who was second at the 2023 PacWest Championships and fifth last year at the regional race in Montana. Jared Wright, who placed ninth in 2022 in Billings, now runs for Azusa Pacific adding to their arsenal. 

Last year, Chico State and Western Washington occupied the top two positions with the Cougars finishing third. Biola was sixth in 2022, with Fresno Pacific eighth and Concordia tenth. 

Race time temperatures in Monmouth are expected to be in the high 50's with cloudy skies. For more information on the course and races, click here.