Andrea Condrie finished first overall for the Vandals, running 17:46.8 and leading the charge as Idaho defeated GU 19-44.
"It's also pretty early in the season for me," Thurston said. "I'm definitely not where I want to be so I'm kind of using these meets as just like hard workouts to get where I want to be."
The Vandals put nine runners between Thurston and the Zags' second finisher, sophomore Claire Manley -- who continued her strong start to the season, finishing 12th in 18:44.1.
Fellow underclassmen, Jenna Rogers, Lauren Bourgeois and Ally Legard followed quickly behind in 19:02.