SALEM, Ore.—Juniors Quinn Higgins, Sam Garcia, Emil Miller all finished in the top-78 to lead Lewis & Clark College men's cross country on Saturday morning at the Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational. 

THE BASICS
 
Men's Cross Country – 17^th out of 31 Teams – 440 Points 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
The Pioneers raced against a stacked field of NCAA DI, DII and NAIA teams on Saturday in Salem. 
 
Higgins finished second among NCAA DIII runners and 36^th overall. The junior ran a PR time of 24:47.87.
 
Garcia placed second on the team and 73^rd overall. The junior posted a a PR mark of 25:27.13 to move into the top-50 in program history. 
 
Miller finished 78^th overall and third on the Pioneers. The junior notched a PR time of 25:32.01. 
 
Senior Theron Plumb came across in 151^st place. He notched a season-best time of 26:38.41. 
 
Junior Colin Shimabukuro finished as the team's fifth scorer. He posted a time of 27:09.06 to finish in 184^thplace. 
 
First year Seth Austin placed sixth on the team. He notched a time of 27:14.31 to finish in 190^th place. 
 
Juniors Gavin Sellers and sophomore AJ Gibbs finished back-to-back. Sellers completed his first cross country race in nearly two years in 200^th place. He registered a time of 27:27.50. Gibbs came in just behind him in a season-best time of 27:29.58.  
 
First year Knox Orchard finished ninth on the team. The first year ran a PR time of 27:40.26 to finish in 217^thplace. 
 
Senior Joseph Naylor added a PR time of his own to finish in 225^th place. He registered a mark of 27:46.22. 
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Higgins moved up to 11^th place in program history with his time of 24:47.87 over 8K. Garcia cracked the top-50 and moved into 30^th place with his mark of 25:27.13. Miller joined his teammates in the top-50 and now sits 40^th all-time (25:32.01). 
• Juniors Jordan Wu and John Blockhus finished back-to-back in 228^th and 231^st place. Wu crossed the line in 27:48.24 and Blockhus posted a time of 27:49.02. Both runners notched PR times. 
• Lewis & Clark finished third out of five NCAA DIII teams. The Pioneers finished one point behind Willamette University (439 points). They beat Pacific by 163 points and George Fox by 186. 
• First year Miles Samant crossed the finish line in 30:38.49 to finish 303^rd. Junior Teagon Aasen took 313^th place with a time of 31:16.61. 
• Higgins (Second), Garcia (sixth) and Miller (seventh) all finished in the top-seven among NCAA DIII runners. 

WHAT'S NEXT 
 
Lewis & Clark will travel back to Salem on Saturday, October 18, for the George Oja Linfield Invitational.