BILLINGS, Mont. — Dominican University of California women's cross country runner Julianna Mendez placed 111th out of 167 runners on Saturday in the NCAA Division II West Region Championship hosted by MSU Billings.

The snow had been shoveled away but the temperature at Amend Park still hovered around 40 degrees by the start of the race with the wind chill bringing it closer to 30 degrees. Despite the cold weather, Mendez put herself in the top third of competitors until the final mile. She finished the 6k with a time of 23:59.65.

"This was a great experience for Julianna and an amazing first season for her being brand new to the sport of cross country," said Head Coach Teressa DiPerna. "The more experience she gets racing in cross country, and the more learning opportunities she has, the more she has to build on in the years to come."

Western Washington's Katelyn Steen led all runners with a time of 21:06.59. Califorina Baptist's Caroline Barkechir was the top PacWest Runner with her time of 21:12.11. Other PacWest runners who will advance as individuals are Hawai'i Pacifics' Fiona McKenna (21:22.21) and Azusa Pacific's Staci Foster (21:23.60). West Region teams moving on include Simon Fraser, Chico State, Alaska Anchorage, UC San Diego, Central Washington, and Western Washington.