SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Santa Clara cross country will race competitively for the first time in 15 months on Wednesday morning. The Broncos head to North Las Vegas, Nevada for the 2020 West Coast Conference Championships at Craig Ranch Regional Park.

The women's 6k race begins at 10 a.m., followed by the men's 8k race at 11 a.m. Only seven of the nineteen teams in the conference have competed thus far this season.

Last season, the Bronco men took fourth place while the women took sixth; each result matched the team's best finish at conference since 2011.

WOMEN'S 6K

SCU ENTRIES: Hannah Aguirre, Sasha Codiga, Maiya Fujiwara, Kinsey Hall, Hayley Harrison, Luciana Lenth, Irene Nagasaka, Kayla Neumann, Hope Olbricht, Sarah King

Sarah King scored for the Broncos last season in the conference meet, while Hannah Aguirre, Maiya Fujiwara and Hope Olbricht also raced at the meet. The team was picked to finish fifth in the WCC Spring preseason poll. 

Associate head coach Pete Cushman: "We're thrilled this conference championship has become a reality and I think we all recognize that any race opportunity isn't something we want to take for granted. I've never gone into a conference championship knowing so little about our competition, which makes it all the more intriguing and exciting. We are fit and excited to race." 

National Rankings: BYU (2), Portland (25), San Francisco (30) 

Regional Rankings: BYU (1 – Mountain), Portland (4 – West), San Francisco (5 – West), Gonzaga (11 – West), Saint Mary's (15 – West) 

MEN'S 8K 

SCU ENTRIES: Drew Burns, Harvey Chilcott, Jack Davidson, Jorge Estrella, Kyle Johnson, Zach Litoff, Xander Olivero, Christian Raslowsky Nicholas Russell, Ian Twyman

The Bronco men return three of their top four scorers from both the 2019 WCC and NCAA regional meets. Of that group, Jorge Estrella and Harvey Chilcott are slated to race on Wednesday. Estrella led the Broncos in four straight meets to close out the 2019 season.

Santa Clara will also be bolstered by the return of Jack Davidson, Zach Litoff and Xander Olivero from redshirt seasons. The team was picked to finish fourth in the WCC Spring preseason poll.

Head coach Felipe Montoro: "The team has been able to keep everything in perspective throughout this pandemic and I'm really grateful for that.  The guys are fit and excited to compete with some of the best teams in the country on Wednesday."

National Rankings: BYU (1), Portland (8), Gonzaga (RV) 

Regional Rankings: BYU (1 – Mountain), Portland (2 – West), Gonzaga (5 – West), Santa Clara (10 – West), San Francisco (14 – West), LMU (15 – West) 

NOTE ON EVENT NAME 

This event will retain the designation "2020 WCC Cross Country Championships". The 2021 event is planned for the fall. 

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