July 31, 2008
SAN DIEGO -
Christina Ross was a three-year letterwinner for the Aztec softball team from 2006-08. Last month, Ross became the second All-American in program history when she was named to the Easton Second Team. Over her career, Ross twice earned MWC Pitcher of the Year honors and was a three-time all-league selection. Ross is the career SDSU record holder in solo shutouts (23), shutouts (tied - 28) and strikeouts (612), despite playing just three seasons for the Aztecs. Ross is currently interning in the Aztec media relations office. SAN DIEGO -- Coming off a strong track season, the San Diego State cross country team is looking to improve upon last season's conference finish. In the upcoming year, SDSU will compete in seven regular-season meets, including the Aztec Invitational, before playing host to the Mountain West Conference Championships at Mission Bay. SDSU will open the campaign in Orange County at the Fullerton Season Opener on Aug. 30 and then have a week off prior to running of the 64th annual Aztec Invitational in San Diego at historic Balboa Park. Leading the Aztec pack is junior Darien Buc. The Dana Hills, Calif. native is one of the team's most experience runners and earned her first varsity letter in 2007. Last season, Buc finished 2007 with the team's third-best 4K, fifth-best 5K and posted the Aztecs' third-best time at the NCAA West Regional Championships. Buc recently spoke with Christina Ross about the upcoming season for The Ross Report. Ross Report: Darien Buc On what she's been up to this summer: Going to summer school, running 5-6 days per week, training for the new season. On what her training regimen is like: We run in the summer 30, maybe 35 miles per week. Once we get further into the season we'll raise it up to maybe 40, 45, 50 miles per week. On what fans can expect this season: More team chemistry, we all work together. There are no superstars on our team. No highlights expected from anyone, we all work together and we're all going to do great. On what contributed to her improvements last season: Summer workouts. Going into my freshman year, I didn't train that hard in the summer. It's all up to the individual. We don't have meetings or team practices all summer, so it's all up to you how you do in the fall. On how coach Jennifer Nanista has helped her: She's really inspirational. She doesn't put a lot of pressure on you. She doesn't tell you who you're up against so you're not intimidated to run with whoever's leading the race. On who can step up to fill the void after the departure of Lisa Naucler: It's up to anyone. We have one new transfer who was pretty good in high school so we'll see if she can keep up her reputation and fill Lisa's shoes. On what it means to have the conference championships held in San Diego: We're all really excited. Last year it was supposed to be in San Diego, but because of the fires, we all had to go to New Mexico (at the) last minute. This year having our fans, friends and family watching us, it's going to be a lot easier and more fun having it down here. On what meet she's looking forward to most: Hawaii, for sure. It's called the Big Wave Invitational, and it's a 4K, so it's less than what we're used to running which is good for me. I like it shorter. The point is that it's in Hawaii and we get to go for four days. | |||||