Gonzaga Cross Country

[ZagsObserver]

Men’s and women’s teams crushed the competition at the Clash of the Inland Northwest. GU men took the top three places.

https://gozags.com/news/2019/8/31/cross-country-zag-women-and-men-sweep-titles-in-cheney.aspx

It’s going to be tough, though, in conference. BYU is ranked 2 nationally on the men’s side, and Portland 6. GU has a good chance of getting ranked - about 30 right now. It’ll be fun to watch the young team develop.

[sittingon50]

A great Coach & increased funding has the program on the rise. Fun to follow.

[former1dog]

I should have reported this result but I’m just not as active on the board anymore.

So very proud of the team and Coach Tyson!!

Important notes about this result- Gonzaga rested their top 5 runners and they didn’t compete in this season opener. Gonzaga runners essentially used this meet as a workout and were told to pack run the first 4K and then push it the last 2k. Gonzaga’s unattached runners (athletes in a redshirt season) were second to the athletes that were competing for Gonzaga, in other words it was a totally dominant performance!

I will be at the conference meet in LA this fall and I hope to see Gonzaga upset Portland at least, but it is going to be very difficult. That said, I am very optimistic about our chance at a first ever trip to Nationals for our men’s team. The first 4 are a dream team, we just need an athlete to step up and be that strong 5th runner for a great team score!

[ZagsObserver]

Great info, Former.

Question for ya: when I ran at GU, one of the struggles was a lack of scholarships. I think the entire men’s and women’s teams had like two partial scholarships.

Do you know if this has changed? Tyson sure has done a great job. And yes, that fifth runner is going to be huge. Given the amount of young blood, it wouldn’t surprise me to see someone step up and claim it definitively.

[former1dog]

Great info, Former.

Question for ya: when I ran at GU, one of the struggles was a lack of scholarships. I think the entire men’s and women’s teams had like two partial scholarships.

Do you know if this has changed? Tyson sure has done a great job. And yes, that fifth runner is going to be huge. Given the amount of young blood, it wouldn’t surprise me to see someone step up and claim it definitively.

Zagsobserver,

You're going to be thrilled to learn that in the last few years, Gonzaga went from 3 full rides to 12!!!!

[sittingon50]

Former, do you have any idea if any kids are getting a "full" ride or are they being divvied up, as in baseball?

[former1dog]

Former, do you have any idea if any kids are getting a "full" ride or are they being divvied up, as in baseball?

I’m not privy to how the scholarships are being given out. I assume 1 or 2 athletes are on a ride and that all the top kids are getting some solid assistance.

A friend of mine funded a scholarship in his family name for the team and I know who got that last year�� I could make a call to find out who’s getting it this year also��

That same friend and I and a big group of alumni are working on funding another one, so that’s exciting!