Men place 3rd at WAC Championships

Saturday, February 27

Seattle, Wash.

10am

Grand Canyon

WAC Championships

Photo by: WAC

2/27/2021 1:54:00 PM | Cross Country

Skoog wins conference's Freshman of Year

By: Sam Kuzminski

SEATTLE — The Grand Canyon men's cross country team had its best finish at the WAC Cross Country Championships on Saturday as the Lopes raced to a third-place finish, a two-spot improvement over last season.

"I was overall really impressed with both team's performances," GCU head coach Sara Slattery said. "It has been a challenging year, and we haven't been able to create a momentum yet with COVID-19 protocols. Our teams raced tough and we had multiple athletes competing this year that was their first race of the season."

Joseph_Skoog

Redshirt freshman Joseph Skoog was the Lopes' top finisher, placing sixth overall. He ran the 8-kilometer race in 24 minutes, 49.5 seconds. Skoog was honored with WAC Freshman of the Year and a spot on the All-WAC first team for his solid performances in this short season.

"Receiving Freshman of the Year is such an honor," Skoog said. "It was a blessing to have another opportunity to run a cross country race, as it is a great learning experience. Racing is just as much a mental game, as it is physical. I felt that the mentality of the game held me back a little today."

As part of a limited Lopes men's team because of COVID-10 protocols, sophomore Rylan Stubbs and senior Chris D'Angelo raced for the first time this season on Saturday. They placed 31st and 36th, respectively. Also, redshirt sophomore Jacob Lewis, juniors Blake Bennett and Landon Rast placed in 18th, 19th, and 23rd for GCU.

"I was proud of how our men competed today," Slattery said. "I felt that Lewis, Bennett and Rast were too far back in the race, but they came through with a strong performance, regardless. Going into next season, the expectations are exceeded and the bar will be raised. We were excited to get freshman Luke Wentz back, as he hadn't been with the team last week due to COVID-19 protocols."

On the women's side, junior Ana Alvarez Tostado led the way in a fourth-place team finish. Alvarez Tostado came in 24th place with a time of 23:06.60. Freshman Hana Hall and Halle Jenkins competed in their first collegiate cross country meets and placed 26th and 28th, respectively.

"The women were able to race in a pack today," Slattery said. "I feel that they had a lot more in them, but they raced tough overall. It was a weird start for our athletes that competed in their first cross country meet of the year."

Senior and team captain Mckayla Cordova ran in her last cross country race as a Lope and had her best finish in 27th place. She ran the 6-kilometer race in 23:25.90.

"I felt very strong in the beginning of the race, and I was able to push all the way through and follow what coach Sara was telling me," Cordova said. "We worked really well in a pack today and relied on each other well."

The Lopes are looking forward to a fast transition to compete in the outdoor track and field season.