Freshman Trio Heads to US XC Championships in St. Louis
 
PORTLAND, Ore. --- (left to right) Alex Bowns, Alex Dillard, and Danny Martinez will represent the Portland Pilots’ men’s cross country team this weekend as the freshman trio heads to the annual U.S.A. Cross Country Championships in St. Louis, Mo.
 
Participating in the Junior Men’s 8k, Portland’s freshman will be pitted against the nation’s top collegiate runners in the prestigious event.
 
“Our guys have made a lot of progress since arriving in the fall,” Portland head coach Rob Conner said just before the group departed Portland. “I am super excited to see how they stack up against the best young runners in the nation.”
 
Dillard and Martinez ran in only a couple of events during the fall season. Dillard, a native of Dufur, Ore., clocked a 24:10.15 at the WCC Preview early in the season and then placed second with a time of 24:37.29 at the WPC Open.
 
Martinez, meanwhile, only participated in the WCC Preview on September 15. The 2011 California State Cross Country Champion ran a 23:34.12 in the event, good for a ninth place finish.
 
This is first collegiate meet for Bowns.