LOS ANGELES — Proving again to be models of consistency and talent, the University of San Francisco men's and women's cross country teams both earned top-five team finishes at the West Coast Conference championships for the 16th straight year, with the women finishing third and the men fifth at Friday's 2019 rendition held at Woodley Lakes Golf Course.
 
WOMEN
 
Aoibhe Richardson was the Dons' lone all-WCC honoree Friday, finishing fourth overall in the women's 6-kilometer race. She was only nine seconds off the winning time, running a career-best 19 minutes, 58.4 seconds. She was fifth at last year's WCC Championship.
 
Anna Tait was the Dons' No. 2 runner for the first time this season, finishing 17th in a season-best 21:29.0. Freshman Sophie Soefeldt was the Dons' third finisher, placing 20th to give USF three in the top-20 with a time of 21:34.6.
 
Elissa Mann (29th, 21:49.3) and Eve Jensen (32nd, 21:54.6) rounded out the Dons' scoring five. San Francisco scored 90 points to finish third as a team, its fifth consecutive top-three finish and 11th year in a row scoring under 100 points.
 
Abby Pradere was just outside the top-50 in her first career championship cross country race, placing 51st in 22:28.5. Josien Scheepens continued to be a part of the Dons' top-seven this season, finishing 57th in 22:35.7. Katherine Badham ran her first cross country race of the year with the Dons and finished 62nd in 22:56.0. Valerie Almanza was 69th in 23:14.1.
 
BYU swept the women's competition with a 1-2-3 finish and placing eight in the top-10, winning the conference title for the second straight year. Whittni Orton was the individual winner in 19:49.3.
 
MEN
 
The San Francisco men grabbed their 16th consecutive top-five finish at the WCC Championship on Friday in a race that featured three nationally ranked teams and four in the regional rankings. The Dons finished fifth as a team with 177 points, beating regionally ranked Pepperdine in the process.
 
USF packed well to get the job done, with Andy Snyder leading the way in 23rd place with a time of 24:44.7. Sam Stevens wasn't far behind in 30th with a time of 25:04.0. Daniel Maneloveg came in with Stevens, finishing 34th in 25:08.6.
 
Jacob Hernandez (59th, 26:07.4) and Caleb Haugland (67th, 26:37.5) capped the Dons' scoring. Hiruy Alemseged placed 76th with a time of 27:45.3
 
COMING UP
San Francisco will rest for two weeks before traveling to Colfax, Wash., for the NCAA West Regional and a chance to qualify for the NCAA Championships.