Oct. 29, 2009
SAN DIEGO - The San Diego State cross country team begins its championship season Saturday in the 11th edition of the Mountain West Conference Cross Country Championships at Cascade Golf Course in Orem, Utah. The women's 6,000-meter race begins at 11 a.m. MT and will follow the men's 8K race (10 a.m.).
The Aztecs will send nine runners to the Beehive State, including their top-two performers this season in senior Rachel Williams (Mt. Hermon, Calif.) and freshman Marianne Hogan (Bedford, Quebec). In the team's five races, Williams has been its top finisher three times, while Hogan has taken top honors twice. The duo owns each of the school's top-six times at the 6K distance this season, including Hogan's team-best 23:03.0 clocking at the Stanford Invitational on Sept. 26.
Freshman Jordan Davis (Santa Rosa, Calif.) and junior Michelle Martinez (Burbank, Calif.) should also challenge for SDSU. Davis has been the team's No. 3 runner in two of the five races and never worse than fifth, while Martinez has four top-five finishes to her credit. Davis' 23:58.0 time at Stanford trails only Williams and Hogan, while Martinez owns a collegiate-best time of 23:14.0.
If San Diego State's last race is any indication, then sophomore Josefine Koskinen (Stockholm, Sweden) and junior Sara Beyers (Danville, Calif.) will be in the mix as well. At the Northridge Invitational on Oct. 16, the two battled near 100 degree temperatures to finish 55th (20:21.7) and 57th (20:27.7), respectively, at the 5K distance. Koskinen has raced just twice for the Aztecs this year, while Beyers has four consecutive top-five finishes on the team.
Others scheduled to run for SDSU include senior Makenzie Mabry (La Crescenta, Calif.), and sophomores Amy Brown (Sydney, Australia) and Melissa Bunn (Simi Valley, Calif.). Mabry has run three of the five races this season with a 21:38.0 5K time at the Northridge Invitational last time out. Brown hasn't raced since setting a collegiate-best 5K time of 21:05.0 at the Aztec Invitational in September, while Bunn set a collegiate-best time of 26:00.4 over the 6K distance at the Triton Classic on Oct. 10.
A year ago at the championships at Mission Bay in San Diego, Kristin Glen was the team's top finisher in 42nd place (23:23), followed by Martinez (51st, 23:52), senior Darien Buc (Dana Point, Calif.) (55th, 24:02), Beyers (56th, 24:04) and Sara Cunningham (59th, 24:19). Williams (61st, 24:37), Anne Viera (66th, 25:13), junior Andrea Norton (Sacramento, Calif.) (70th, 25:27) and Kelly Oelschlager (72nd, 26:21) also completed the course for San Diego State, which finished in ninth.
This year's race should be stacked once again at the front. A year ago, New Mexico, ranked No. 20 this season, took its first-ever title with 31 points, narrowly defeating Brigham Young's 33. The Cougars are ranked No. 21 in the nation this season and are running on their own home course.
Cascade Golf Course is located at 1313 East 800 North in Orem, Utah. Complete results and photos from the championship will be available on the MWC website at www.TheMWC.com following the conclusion of the women's race.