Oct. 11, 2008
LA JOLLA, Calif. - The San Diego State cross country team was led by senior Kristin Glen and received four personal-record efforts en route to a third-place finish at the Triton Classic on Saturday morning. Among Division I competition only, SDSU emerged as the top squad finishing ahead of UC Irvine, the 14th-ranked team in the West Region, according to the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association's (USTFCCCA) most recent poll.
"The team ran solid this morning," assistant coach Jennifer Nanista said. "We are improving, moving in the right direction and looking good going into the end of the season."
Overall, San Diego State placed three athletes in the top 25 beginning with Glen. The team captain completed the 6,000-meter course at UC San Diego in 22 minutes, 57.70 seconds, to come in 14th place. Her performance was just five seconds short of a personal record and marked the second straight meet in which she finished with the Aztecs' fastest time.
Junior Darien Buc posted the field's 23rd-best mark as she established a personal record by 0:00.90 after she crossed the finish line in 23:39.80. Prior to today, her PR was 23:40.70. Joining Buc and Glen in the top 25 was Rachel Williams, who placed 24th. The junior completed the race in personal-record fashion by navigating the course in 23:42.60. Williams' time was over 40 seconds better than her previous best 6K time set at the Stanford Invitational two weeks ago.
Senior Kelly Oelschlager barely missed out on the top 25 after finishing the meet in 33rd place with a lifetime-best performance of 23:59.90. Junior Sara Cunningham found herself nine spots behind Oelschlager in 42nd place after she ran a personal-record 24:21.10. Similar to Williams, Oelschlager and Cunningham both erased their old PRs, which occurred at Stanford.
Other Aztecs to finish the race include Michelle Martinez (24:32.20; 45th), Sara Beyers (24:32.40; 46th), Anne Vieira (24:55.50; 56th), Alyssa Robinson (24:59.50; 60th), Makenzie Mabry (25:15.10; 68th), and Melissa Bunn (26:08.30; 88th).
San Diego State returns to action Saturday, Oct. 18, at the Bronco Invitational in Sunnyvale, Calif.
Triton Classic
6K - UC San Diego (La Jolla, Calif.)
Team Results (top 8 out of 14)
1. Alaska Anchorage - 45 points
2. UC San Diego - 61
3. San Diego State - 111
4. Cal Poly Pomona - 119
5. Central Arizona - 155
6. Cal State Stanislaus - 162
7. (#14 West Region) UC Irvine - 173
8. San Diego - 221
Individual Results (SDSU only)
14. Kristin Glen (SDSU) - 22:57.70
23. Darien Buc (SDSU) - 23:39.80
24. Rachel Williams (SDSU) - 23:42.60
33. Kelly Oelschlager (SDSU) - 23:59.90
42. Sara Cunningham (SDSU) - 24:21.10
45. Michelle Martinez (SDSU) - 24:32.20
46. Sara Beyers (SDSU) - 24:32.40
56. Anne Vieira (SDSU) - 24:55.50
60. Alyssa Robinson (SDSU) - 24:59.50
68. Makenzie Mabry (SDSU) - 25:15.10
88. Melissa Bunn (SDSU) - 26:08.30