WAIPAHU, Oahu - The Fresno Pacific cross country teams had a brilliant showing at the PacWest Championships held at the Hawaii Country Club, collecting several All-PacWest honors and clinching second place over two-time defending champs, Azusa Pacific.

"We ran a strong race on both sides today. The ladies overcame adversity to finish 6th in the conference, highlighted by Julissa getting 3rd team all conference!" said first-year head coach Landon Miller. "The guys ran with a lot of heart and were only beaten by a really strong Biola team. This race was a great experience for our team that sets us up really well for the regional meet in 2 weeks!"

The Sunbird men ran as a tight pack in the 8K and closely trailed the Biola Eagles, securing a second-place finish for FPU with a team score of 53, which was only 18 points away from Biola. Several Sunbirds captured all PacWest honors due to their incredible performance at the Hawaii Country Club.

Taking seventh place, freshman Luke Sanders led the Sunbirds with his 25:14 time to earn All-PacWest First Team. Sawyer Pugliese (25:19), Evan Torres (25:23), and Rodney Chemalmal (25:31) were close behind Sanders, securing Second-Team honors. David De Loera and Daniel Galvez were in the Top 20, coming in 15^th and 18^th respectively to close out the Third-Team laurels.

On the women's side, Julissa Avila crossed the line at the 22:25 mark to capture a 17^th place finish, earning All-PacWest Third Team. Aly Chavez finished next for the Sunbirds, coming in 27^th with a time of 22:52. Julia Martinez (23:14), Gaby Ramirez (23:1.8), Mattie Whipple (24:05) and Jaslin Arana (24:08) were the last of the Lady 'Birds to finish in the Top 50. Altogether, the women's team scored 157 points overall and finished sixth in the PacWest Conference Championships.

NEXT UP: The Sunbirds prepare for West Regionals on Saturday, Nov. 8th in Salem, Oregon.

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