NCAA DII XC NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS University of Southern Indiana Angel Mounds Evansville, Ind. Nov. 18, 2017 >>> Men's Results >>> Women's Results
	MEN'S TEAM SCORES (32 TEAMS) 1. Adams State, 44; 2. Grand Valley State, 64; 3. Colorado Mines, 85; 4. Western State, 215; 5. Cal Baptist, 229; 6. Queens, 243; 7.  CSU Pueblo, 310; 8. Augustana, 326; 9. Chico State, 335; 10. Shippensburg, 351; 21. Western Oregon, 534. WOU INDIVIDUALS (249 FINISHERS) 30. David Ribich, 31:47.1 88. Josh Dempsey, 32:37.9 118. Tyler Jones, 33:09.9 186. Justin Crosswhite, 34:12.4 202. Dustin Nading, 34:31.7 240. Hunter Mosman, 35:30.3 245. Parker Marson, 36:08.6 WOMEN'S TEAM SCORES (32 TEAMS) 1. Adams State, 126; 2. University of Mary, 137; 3. Cal Baptist, 148; 4. Chico State, 179; 5. Alaska Anchorage, 180; 6. Grand Valley State, 185; 7. Hillsdale, 279; 8. Cal State San Marcos, 288; 9. Western State, 331; 10. Simon Fraser, 332; 16. Cal Poly Pomona, 449. WOU INDIVIDUALS (247 FINISHERS) 97. Kennedy Rufener, 22:27.2

EVANSVILLE, Ind.—Returning with a full team to the NCAA DII National Championships for the first time since 2011 the Western Oregon University men's cross country squad placed 21st overall on Saturday.

The WOU men totaled 534 points in the team chase. Adams State (Colo.) won its 13th NCAA DII crown with a meet-low 44 points. The No. 1-ranked Grizzlies finished with all five scorers inside the top 20. Grand Valley State took second with 64 points to break up a trio of schools from Colorado with Colorado Mines third with 85 points and Western State fourth at 213. Cal Baptist was the leading team in the West Region with a fifth-place finish with 227 points.

Taking the individual national title, Tiffin University's James Ngandu closed out the year in undefeated fashion by covering the 10,000-meter course in 30 minutes and 18.8 seconds. More than 30 seconds back, Grand Valley State's Zach Panning placed second with a 30:52.8.

Ribich and Ngandu separated from the pack from the gun with Ngandu taking over pace-setting duties. Ribich stayed on Ngandu's shoulder through the first three kilometers before a Ngandu push separated the pair. The two crossed the 3,000-meter in just over nine minutes with Ngandu posting an official 9:06.9 at the checkpoint.

After crossing 5,000 meters in 14:55, Ribich maintained the runner-up position through roughly 6,500 meters before the chase pack covered the gap. Ribich held on to take 30th place overall with a 31:47.1 to earn All-American honors. The result was also the single highest finish by a WOU cross country at the NCAA DII National Championship meet.

"David was the only guy to challenge (Ngandu) for the win," WOU head coach Mike Johnson said. "You have to give respect for that but he paid dearly. Overall, we have to take some solace in the fact that this was probably our worst day of the year, but we were still able to beat 11 national-caliber teams."

Josh Dempsey, the only other senior on the squad, placed second on the team with a 32:37.9 for 88th place overall. Tyler Jones (118th, 33:09.9), Justin Crosswhite (186th, 34:12.4) and Dustin Nading (202nd, 34:31.7) rounded out the scoring positions for the Wolves. Hunter Mosman (240th, 35:30.3) and Parker Marson (245th, 36:08.6) provided the final two finishers for Western Oregon.

"The guys had a great attitude and with five members of the team non-seniors, they were able to log some valuable championship experience," Johnson said. "Josh did a heckuva job for us with an excellent cross country race while Tyler and Justin gave good solid races as well."

Competing as an individual after earning an at-large berth to nationals, Kennedy Rufener place 97th overall out of 247 competitors after covering the 6,000-meter course in 22:27.2.  
Rufener opened the first kilometer in 92nd place before moving up positions over the next three kilometer checkpoints to eventually climb to as high as 80th place. 

Alaska Anchorage's Caroline Kurgat, the West Region champion, dominated the field from the get-go with a time of 20:32.3. Leading the chase pack at the end, Walsh's Sarah Berger placed second with a 20:52.1.

"Kennedy came out a little flat and was probably a minute away from where she probably hoped to finish," Johnson said. "But she has had an outstanding season with all-conference and all-region honors and that should certainly be celebrated."  

Adams State edged University of Mary, 126 to 137 points for the women's team title. The West Region teams placed three in the top five with Cal Baptist (148), Chico State (179) and Alaska Anchorage (180) taking the next three positions. The West Region added two more teams inside the top 10 with Cal State San Marcos placing eighth and Simon Fraser (332) 10th.