MONMOUTH, Ore.  – Running at official collegiate distance for the first time this season, the Beacons were in action on Saturday at the Mike Johnson Classic, hosted by Western Oregon University.
 
On the men's side, the Beacons finished tenth in a 12-team field, but Head Coach Kyle Will saw plenty to be excited about. He said, "The boys had a great day with six guys all under 29 minutes and last year we only had four guys break 29 for the season. For the fact that they were running in their first 8K, I am very impressed with my freshman who continue to lead the team and took the top four spots for us today."
 
Luke Phillips led the team in 51st-place, running a 26:31.0 to become the 19th-fastest Bushnell men's cross country runner. Sawyer Miller added himself to the top-25 runners list as well, as he also broke the 27-minute mark at 26:59.6, taking 63rd.
 
Bushnell's other scoring runners were two more freshmen and a sophomore, all with career-best 8000-meter times. Josiah Swick took 86th (28:01.7), Hunter Davis was 87th (28:10.3) and Ben Patterson (pictured) was 93rd (28:43.6). CJ Long was close behind in 96th (28:53.4) while Ben Carter earned his collegiate PR with a 29:06.8, taking 100th.
 
Also competing for the Beacons were James Bechtol (115th), Jackson Engstrom (119th) and Andrew Thurman (121st).
 
On the women's side, the Beacons had just four runners competing so were unable to earn a team score. Eden Rosensteel led the way for the team, taking 68th with a time of 23:06.2 which ties for the 14th-fasted 6000-meter run in school history. 

Also competing were Cadence Smith (107th, 25:07.3), Sidney Love (pictured, 114th, 26:06.3), and Jordan Lauinger (117th, 26:31.1). 
 
"Our girls have been decimated with injury and sickness," said Will, "and today we got our second round of illness. Many of our girls couldn't run and one of our runners competed after having a 101-degree fever yesterday. I am very pleased with the four who ran and how they competed given the circumstances."
 
Up Next: The Beacons return to action in one week, traveling to Bush Park in Salem, Oregon for the Charles Bowles Invitational on Saturday morning.