SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The women's cross country team closed out their season on a high note Friday at the NCAA West Regional Championship, held on the rolling and mud-slicked fairways and greens of Sacramento's Arcade Creek Golf Course.
"I am so proud of the way we attacked this race as a team," said Head Coach
Chloe Curtis. "We were hungry for redemption after Conference and went into this race on a mission."
The Lions placed ahead of several West Coast Conference rivals and jumped five spots from last year's Regional finish to claim 31st place. "We executed our plan perfectly, moving up through each split to pass [University of San Diego] and Saint Mary's in the second half of the race," said Curtis.
Senior Hayden Washington (Valencia, CA), as she has done every race since her sophomore season, led the way for the Lions. She covered the 6k course in 22:11.2 to cap off a dominant and remarkable LMU Cross Country career. "Hayden's consistency is absolutely incredible," Curtis said, adding that the senior leader has done so much to elevate the program in her four years on the Bluff. "It was great to see her finish off her career with such a gritty performance," Curtis said. "She gave everything she had for the team today, as always."
Close behind Washington in a time of 22:24.6 was junior Rylee Guinn (Brentwood, CA), whose season-long steadiness helped anchor the team's progress throughout the fall. Guinn edged out teammate and co-captain Tessa Kline (Springfield, MA) by less than half a second, with Kline finishing in 22:25.0 in what was arguably her best of the season.
Junior Ava Boyd (Longmont, CO) finished fourth for LMU in 22:26.7, continuing her ascent as a vital contributor to the team. Boyd, who walked onto the program as a sophomore having never raced cross country before, now boasts a résumé that includes two WCC Championship appearances and two NCAA West Regional Championships—all in just 12 lifetime cross country races. Boyd once again delivered, this time in the season finale, and helped the Lions post a tight 15-second spread between their top four finishers.
"Rylee, Tessa and Ava were clutch today," said Curtis, who credited the trio for stepping up as team leaders this season. "They worked together throughout the race and finished on empty."
Rounding out the scoring five was junior Alex Zanon (Campbell, CA), who returned to the number five spot for the fifth time this season in a time of 23:39.2. Nipping at her heels was freshman Kailey O'Brien, who surged over the final 1,000 meters to finish in 23:39.5, followed closely by Collette Heil in 23:41.
The Lions now take a break before prepping for a season on the track.
