SPOKANE — Cougar Cross Country heads 90 minutes north to Spokane for the West Coast Conference Cross Country Championships on Saturday, Nov. 1. 

Evans Kurui will look to defend his crown in the men's 8K while Zenah Cheptoo will look to replicate her podium finish from last year in the women's 6K. Solomon Kipchoge, the two-time WCC Runner of the Week and freshman Rosemary Longisa, will look to spoil the party for the reigning champions.  

The women's race begins at 10 a.m. PT and the men's race starts at 11 a.m. PT. 

WSU will compete against Gonzaga, LMU, Oregon State, Pacific, Pepperdine, Portland, Saint Mary's, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Clara and Seattle U. 

Parking will be available free of charge at Spokane Valley Commons. Shuttles between this lot and the course will be available from 8:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. on race day. 

The men were ranked 11th in the nation and first in the West Region last Tuesday, USTFCCA announced. The women were ranked 22nd in the nation and fourth in the West Region. 

In the previous meet at the Nuttycombe Invitational, Solomon Kipchoge finished second with a time of 23:05.6 and Evans Kurui took fifth place with a time of 23:26.5. 

Rosemary Longisa finished third with a time of 19:39.2, only nine seconds behind the first-place finisher. Zenah Cheptoo finished 21st with a time of 20:17.8 and Josphat Meli finished 28th with a time of 23:44.3.