PORTLAND, Ore. -- The Lewis-Clark State women's cross country team came in third in the NAIA Region I Cross Country Championships, virtually assuring the Warriors of an invitation to Nationals.

The L-C men's team placed sixth, which may or may not be enough to qualify for Nationals.

The Warrior women, 13th in the nation, were led by Tausha Kuzmic, who finished eighth in the 5-kilometer race with a time of 18 minutes, 16.35 seconds. Taryn Joyce-Mendive was next for L-C, coming in 18th in 18:56.32.

Matt Solosabal was the fastest man for L-C, placing 19th in the 8K race with a time of 26:21.63. Anton Sousa cam in 21st in 26:23.82.

Warrior coach Mike Collins said it would be a "sheer shock" if the women's team doesn't receive a bid for Nationals, having come in third behind Simon Fraser, ranked No. 2, and British Columbia, No. 4.

Collins thinks the men's chance of a bid is "50-50." The Warriors came in 12 points behind Warner Pacific, a team Collins felt they needed to beat to qualify. Solosabal and Sousa could also earn individual invitations, Collins said.

Bids will be announced early this week for the national championships, which will be held in two weeks in Louisville, Ky.

NAIA REGION I CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

CASCADE CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS

At Lents Park, Portland, Ore.

WOMEN

Team scores -- 1, Simon Fraser, 29. 2, British Columbia, 41. 3, Lewis-Clark State, 107. 4, Northwest U., 114. 5, Eastern Oregon, 123. 6, Oregon Tech, 177. 7, Southern Oregon, 184. 8, Albertson, 225. 9, Westminster, 260. 10, Western Baptist, 280. 11, Evergreen State, 290.

Top 10 individuals -- 1, Kristen Kolstad, SF, 17:45.59. 2, Celia Ambery, BC, 17:52.65. 3, Julia Howard, SF, 17:55.23. 4, Shannon Elmer, BC, 18:00.18. 5, Heather McEwen, BC, 18:00.68. 6, Meredith McGregor, SF, 18:05.56. 7, Tiffany Stilwater, NWU, 18:07.53. 8, Tausha Kuzmic, LCSC, 18:16.35. 9, Rebecca Johnstone, SF, 18:21.96. 10, Leah Belanger, SF, 18:27.21.

Other LCSC individuals -- 18, Taryn Joyce-Mendive, 18:56.32; 24, Erica Johnson, 19:13.97; 29, April Homan, 19:26.26; 30, Darrah Hocum, 19:29.63; 36, Shannon McKenzie, 19:50.52; 37, Jenny Jensen, 19:54.15; 45, Rikki Glick, 20:31.01; 58, Hillary Buettner, 21:20.92; 62, Capri Morton, 21:29.75.

MEN

Team scores -- 1, Simon Fraser, 49. 2, Southern Oregon, 74. 3, British Columbia, 76. 4, Eastern Oregon, 77. 5, Warner Pacific, 149. 6, Lewis-Clark State, 161. 7, Albertson, 192. 8, Oregon Tech, 225. 9, Evergreen State, 238. 10, Western Baptist, 250. 11, Westminster, 288.

Top 10 individuals -- 1, Eric Griffiths, EO, 24:29.17. 2, Richard Moseley, SF, 24:35.13. 3, Alex McGladrey, EO, 24:48.77. 4, David Wambui, SF, 25:00.28. 5, Kalen Abbott, WP, 25:05.27. 6, Sean Peterson, SO, 25:22.32. 7, Ian Schroeder, EO, 25:27.08. 8, Dylan Gant, SF, 25:30.28. 9, Morgan Titus, BC, 25:34.04. 10, Jeff Symonds, BC, 25:37.80.

LCSC individuals -- 19, Matt Solosabal, 26:21.63; 21, Anton Sousa, 26:23.82; 32, Aaron Galbraith, 26:49.31; 41, James Cox, 27:04.82; 54, Keith Nebeker, 27:46.88; 58, Jarrett Kuzmic, 27:55.26; 66, Austin Moothart, 28:10.99; 67, EJ Stagner, 28:11.80; 75, Trevor Olson, 28:38.26; 78, Johnny Nelson, 29:22.34.