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PREDICTIONS: 2024 West Coast Conference (WCC) XC Championships

  • Writer: Admin (Garrett Zatlin)
    Admin (Garrett Zatlin)
  • Nov 1, 2024
  • 5 min read

In a weird way, the West Coast Conference both benefitted and was hurt by the recent conference realignment.


With the PAC-12 crumbling, at least initially, the only schools that remained in that conference were Oregon State and Washington State. And with the PAC-12 attempting to rebuild themselves, the West Coast Conference was able to temporarily adopt those two schools (for select sports) as part of their conference championships.


But despite the two-year stay for the Beavers and Cougars, those two teams will eventually return to the PAC-12. And when they do, they'll bring Gonzaga with them, the current focal athletic program of the WCC.


There is, of course, plenty of time before all of that happens. And until then, you can expect this year to feature a quietly competitive West Coast Conference XC Championship.

Women Individual Race (6k)

  1. Rosina Machu (Gonzaga)

  2. Zenah Cheptoo (Washington State)

  3. Fleur Templier (Portland)

  4. Kate Laurent (Oregon State)

  5. Laura Pellicoro (Portland)

  6. Willow Collins (Gonzaga)

  7. Logan Hofstee (Gonzaga)

  8. Maebh Richardson (Portland)

  9. Alaina Stone Boggs (Washington State)

  10. Caroline Jepkorir (Washington State)

  11. Jessica Frydenlund (Gonzaga)

  12. Jade Rypkema (Gonzaga)

  13. Sadie Tuckwood (Gonzaga)

  14. Erin Cosgrove (Oregon State)

  15. Katharina Goetschl (San Francisco)

  16. Neema Kimtai (Washington State)

  17. Sage Brooks (Oregon State)

  18. Maella Hodgson (Oregon State)

  19. Juliette Forstrom (Portland)

  20. Teresa Perez (Portland)


Analysis: It seems fair to say that Gonzaga's Rosina Machu is the clear favorite to secure the win tomorrow. The Bulldog ace had a huge breakout season last year and, for the most part, has carried that success into these fall months. Earlier this season, she placed 3rd at the Nuttycombe Invite before taking 4th place at the top-heavy Arturo Barrios Invite.


And yet, despite her "heavy favorite" status, Machu will still have to work quite a bit in order to secure gold. That's because Washington State's Zenah Cheptoo has a decent enough shot to pull off the upset. Unlike last year, the Cougar ace now has experience and just put together a strong runner-up effort in the "B" race at Pre-Nationals.


Rosina Machu crossing the line at Pre-Nationals // Photo via Andrew LeMay

Other women such as Fleur Templier (Portland) and Kate Laurent (Oregon State) will likely be near the front of this race. They are both low-stick-caliber women who should provide great scoring value for their respective teams.


Portland's Laura Pellicoro is a two-time All-American who is also in this field, but we have yet to see her race this season. Simply put, she's a major wild card for Saturday.


Men's Individual Race (8k)

  1. Evans Kurui (Washington State)

  2. Matt Strangio (Portland)

  3. Jona Bodirsky (Portland)

  4. Bryce Cerkowniak (Gonzaga)

  5. Wil Smith (Gonzaga)

  6. Brian Barsaiya (Washington State)

  7. Kgadi Monyebodi (Portland)

  8. Drew Kolodge (Gonzaga)

  9. Estanis Ruiz (Portland)

  10. Jonas Gertsen (Portland)

  11. Jonathan Carmin (Portland)

  12. Paul Beaven (Santa Clara)

  13. Cooper Laird (Gonzaga)

  14. Logan Law (Gonzaga)

  15. Bradley Peloquin (Portland)

  16. Paul Talens (Gonzaga)

  17. Zach Elam (San Francisco)

  18. Leif Swanson (Washington State)

  19. Kelvin Limo (Washington State)

  20. Ishaan Singh (Santa Clara)


Analysis: Unlike the women's race, the battle for the individual title on the men's side isn't quite as clear-cut as we think it is. That's because Evans Kurui (Washington State) and Matt Strangio (Portland) both seem capable of securing gold.


Kurui first caught our attention with some crazy-good early-season performances, including a 3rd place effort at the Joe Piane Invite. The challenge, however, is that he then faded to 2nd place by seven seconds in the "B" race at Pre-Nationals. That was a field that he was supposed to soundly defeat.


Evans Kurui crossing the line at the Cougar Classic // Photo via Washington State Athletics

Strangio, meanwhile, has had a few hiccups on the cross country course throughout his career. However, a fantastic 11th place finish at the Nuttycombe Invite earlier this fall suggests that he's back in top form.


The only issue is that we haven't seen Strangio (and a large handful of other Portland men) race since the Nuttycombe Invite. That, in turn, leaves us with one less result to analyze.


You could argue that Gonzaga's Wil Smith is capable of winning gold on Saturday. And from a resume standpoint, we wouldn't argue with you. However, the Bulldog ace has admittedly struggled this fall, failing to emerge as the low-stick standout that he has been for the last two years.


That being said, a return to form could give Smith a minor upset title victory this weekend.


Women's Team Race

  1. Gonzaga Bulldogs

  2. Portland Pilots

  3. Oregon State Beavers

  4. Washington State Cougars

  5. San Francisco Dons


Analysis: This should be a somewhat comfortable win for the Gonzaga women. They have the best firepower, the best middle-lineup scoring and the best depth of any team in this field. They have reinforcements if they need them and they have plenty of experience at nationally competitive meets this fall.


A really good day from either Portland or Oregon State could make things interesting. However, we have seen significant gaps form after the first few women for both of those squads. A smaller and less competitive field should allow both the Pilots and Beavers to cut down on those gaps, but those women would still need to take a leap in their fitness to match the firepower of the Bulldogs.


The Portland women on the starting line before the Nuttycombe Invite // Photo via Andrew LeMay

The very best version of Washington State also makes for an interesting team in this field. Through four runners, they have tons of upside and a sneaky-good amount of firepower. Even so, we have yet to see all four of those women run at their very best on the same day. And even if they did, the depth of Gonzaga, Portland and Oregon State would likely be too much to overcome.


Men's Team Race

  1. Portland Pilots

  2. Gonzaga Bulldogs

  3. Washington State Cougars

  4. Santa Clara Broncos

  5. San Francisco Dons


Analysis: The Portland men seem like the somewhat clear favorites to win this race -- but they aren't necessarily comfortable favorites, either.


The Pilots boast a true low-stick ace in Matt Strangio and we really liked what we saw from both Jona Bodirsky and Kgadi Monyebodi at the Nuttycombe Invite. At that meet, the Pilots secured a great 11th place finish against some of the best teams in the country.


The depth of Portland is arguably just as good as we thought it would/could be. It was also nice to see Estanis Ruiz step up at the Bill Dellinger Invite to nearly snag a top-20 finish.


The Portland men haven't fielded their top lineup since the Nuttycombe Invite, leaving us with less analysis than we would usually have entering the West Coast XC Championships.


Matt Strangio leading the pack at the Nuttycombe Invite // Photo via Andrew LeMay

The Gonzaga men, meanwhile, continue to be a strong team who are threatening for a national qualifying spot once again. Wil Smith may not be the same potent low-stick that we've grown accustomed to seeing, but he is still a high-impact scorer. It's also clear that Bryce Cerkowniak has made improvements and we really like the veteran scoring stability of Drew Kolodge.


Guys like Cooper Laird and Logan Law should offer enough backend stability to keep things interesting between the Pilots and Bulldogs. But in the end, the overall firepower and scoring options for Portland seem too plentiful for Gonzaga to match.


Even so, an upset win isn't totally out of the question for them.

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