CALDWELL, Idaho – Eastern Oregon Women’s Cross Country fought through serious adversity to a commendable performance at the 2023 Cascade Collegiate Conference Championships, securing a 4th place in the team standings with a total of 139 points. Their success was a result of the combined efforts of their top five runners, completing the 6K race with a total time of 1 hour, 59 minutes, and 48 seconds. The spread within their top five was a mere 1 minute and 11 seconds, boasting an average time of 23 minutes and 57 seconds per runner.
In the individual performances, Jaiden Cochran, finishing 18th, showcased remarkable consistency with steady splits at 2K and 4K, ultimately crossing the finish line in 23 minutes and 10.9 seconds. Lauryn Mitchell secured the 26th position, maintaining a steady pace throughout and completing the race in 23 minutes and 46.2 seconds. Ashley Treadwell earned a 34th finish, with a final time of 24 minutes and 10.9 seconds. Mattie Woodbury secured 37th place, completing the race in 24 minutes and 18.5 seconds, while Madelyn Nichols finished in 38th place with a time of 24 minutes and 22.2 seconds. Each of these athletes contributed to Eastern Oregon Women’s Cross Country’s impressive 4th place finish at the championships.
“Despite some adversity (several fighting illnesses, another with an injury and another with a car accident two weeks ago), the ladies COMPETED very well,” said head coach Ben Welch about his teams performance. “The goal was to stay in fourth as a team and secure the Conference Host Bid. And by the looks of things, they did just that by beating Oregon Tech by a slim margin of four points! Some very strong performances today, especially Jaiden and Ashley as freshman. Extremely proud of their efforts today.”