Sept. 15, 2011
SAN DIEGO -
2011 SCHEDULE | 2010 TOP TIMES | AZTEC INVITE INFO | COMMUNITY 5K INFO
The San Diego State cross country team begins its 2011 season Saturday (Sept. 17) at the 67th annual Aztec Invitational. This year's invitational will include three races, all set to run at historic Balboa Park.
The Aztecs will compete in the 5,000-meter race, which is scheduled to start at 8:30 a.m. PT. Both the invitational and open fields have been combined. The men's 8K will follow at 9 a.m. PT, and the community 5K race ends the day at 10 a.m. PT.
Last year, SDSU finished sixth in the competitive eight-team invitational field, which was won by No. 20 Brigham Young. Marianne Hogan, who was San Diego State's top finisher in every race last season, took sixth of 83 runners in a 5K time of 18 minutes, 26.3 seconds. It was the third-fastest time on the course by an Aztec since 1999, according to www.athletic.net. Shannon Rowbury, a 2009 World Championships bronze medalist and 2008 U.S. Olympian in the 1,500, owns the fastest time on the course since 1999 when she ran it in 17:03 while competing for Duke.
Sabrina Rathor (70th, 21:00.8), Melissa Bunn (74th, 21:13.4), Hannah Winokur (78th, 21:48.4), Amy Reaser (81st, 23:27.8) and Amanda Okun (82nd, 24:26.0) all will look to improve their time and placing from last year's invitational. Josefine Koskinen, meanwhile, ran the course in 20:15 in 2009 to take 37th of 94 runners.
Newcomers to this year's XC team include Katie Berge, Hannah Carmen, Kaitlyn Harrison, Megan Hughes, Taylor Johnson, Monique Martinez, Niki Novak, Seana Rigney and Melissa Wendorf. Martinez and Novak each competed for SDSU on last year's track and field team, while Johnson redshirted after a stellar two-year stint at national power Arkansas. Rigney comes to The Mesa after spending two years at Santa Barbara City College.
San Diego State is one of eight teams competing in the 5K. UCLA, which is ranked 10th in the West Region, highlights a field that also includes USC, UNLV, UC San Diego, Point Loma, Biola and San Diego Mesa.
The results for all five races will be posted online at http://finishedresults.com/content/67th-annual-aztec-xc-invitational and at GoAztecs.com sometime after the completion of the community 5K.
Balboa Park is located at Quince Drive and Balboa Drive in San Diego.
67th Annual Aztec Invitational Schedule
Saturday, Sept. 17, 2011
Women's 5K - 8:30 a.m. PT
Men's 8K - 9 a.m. PT
Community 5K - 10 a.m. PT