Teare, Thornton-Bott Race To Individual Victories at Pine Ridge Golf Club

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor/Kim Spir Photos

MOHAWK, Ore. -- The return of the Bill Dellinger Invitational on Thursday formally brought the return of major college cross country competition to Oregon on the accustomed fall calendar, and with it some surprises and indications about what's to come over the next two months. 

Cooper Teare won the men's 8,000-meter race at Pine Ridge Golf Club (formerly Springfield Golf Club). It was the first cross country race for the Oregon senior and NCAA 5,000 meter champion since 2019. 

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"This is actually the first cross country race I've ever won in college," Teare said. "It took four and a half years. So that was definitely a little bit of motivation coming in."

Teare and star transfer Aaron Bienenfeld, an All-American at Cincinnati last March, led the No. 7 Ducks to a team victory with 50 points by going 1-2. 

Teare covered the distance in 23 minutes, 5.1 seconds and Bienenfeld, making his first appearance in an Oregon singlet, was right behind him. 

Gonzaga, paced by a 3-4-5 finish by Washington natives Yacine Guermali, James Mwaura and Wil Smith, outperformed their No. 25 ranking and finished second with 57 points. 

The bigger surprises came in the 6,000-meter women's race. 

Oregon's Izzy Thornton-Bott, a newcomer who grew up in the Great Britain and Australia, wore a vertically striped lemon-and-lime singlet and won the race as an unattached athlete in 20:04.6. 

Due to NCAA eligibility regulations, Thornton-Bott had to miss one meet before she can officially run for the Ducks. She has spent the last four weeks living out of a hotel and staying with teammates until her on-campus housing gets worked out. 

She is a transfer from the University of Waterloo in Canada and has two full years to compete for Oregon.  

“(The race) was basically, run with my teammates, keep with the girls at the front, just relax into it,” Thornton-Bott said. “There was a move made a little earlier than I expected, just after the 4K, I just went, ‘Well, this it.'”

Thornton-Bott overtook Arkansas standout Lauren Gregory in the final 75 meters to win the race. Portland's Anna Pataki was third. 

Behind them, a wave of Utah women cruised through the finish line and won the team competition with 38 points. 

The Utes have reconstructed the roster, primarily with transfer who in some cases have found a home after being at two previous schools. 

Ariel Keklak, who was fourth, came to Utah after running at Wake Forest and Johns Hopkins and competed in the NCAA Division 3 track and field championships in May. 

Emily Venters came to Utah after stints at both Colorado and Boise State and finished fifth in her first cross country race since the 2018 NCAA Championships. 

Simone Plourde, who was sixth, is a transfer from BYU. 

What they have all seen since meeting one another and working together for the past month, is that something special is brewing as a group. 

"Transferring to Utah has been really amazing, being around people who care so much for one another and lift each other up," Venters said. "I think we've known how good we are but to come out here and do this I think we shocked ourselves a little bit. We're just really excited for the rest of the season."