EUGENE, Ore.  – There are plenty of reasons for the Bushnell men's cross country team to be optimistic as they head into the 2021 season.   
 
Bushnell may have taken seventh at the 2020 CCC Championships last spring, but third-year head coach Tom Boldon believes that the team is in great shape for the new campaign. He said, "I am very excited about our team this year and I think they can improve on last year's performance at conference."
 
The men's team is bolstered by newcomers Linus Rueegger (Portland, Ore.) and Noah Mancione (Hillsboro, Ore.), along with a return to competition for Connor Woodcock (Richland, Wash.). All three are considered to be factors in the team's top-five this season.
 
Rueegger comes into the fold as a graduate student after completing a four-year collegiate soccer career at NAIA Soka University in Southern California. Putting in nearly 100 miles of running per week has given him the opportunity to lead a team despite have never competed in the sport. "Linus is new to the sport, but has trained at a high level this past spring and summer and gives us a huge boost," said Boldon. "He looks to be our top runner and is ready to have a breakout season."
 
Mancione is the next in a long line of impressive home-schooled student-athletes on the Beacons and looks to fill part of the void left by three graduated seniors. Coach Boldon said, "Noah has a lot of potential. He works very hard in practice and the coaching staff cannot wait to see what he is going to do over the next four years. He started with a good debut race last week against the Alumni."
 
The newcomers join a sturdy group of returners, led by sophomores Christopher Rosebrook and Gabe Fatooh along with Woodcock, sophomore Quaid Ferguson and junior Kilano Loyd. Andrew Mitchell also returns to the roster as a graduate student and is hoping to return in time for conference after recovering from injury."
 
The Beacons open up the season on Friday afternoon as they travel to McMinnville to compete in the Linfield Harrier Classic.