LAS VEGAS – The Aztec cross country team finished in eighth place in the Mountain West Championships in Las Vegas Friday morning, recording the fastest team time in SDSU's 6k conference championship history.
This was just SDSU's second competition of the season but came on the same course (Craig Ranch Regional Park). As with the previous race, the Aztecs were led by Jessica Kain, who finished in 21:49.4, good for 45th place.
Carlene Masar placed second (52nd overall) among Aztec runners, finishing in 22:05.3, and was followed by freshman Amber Elias (56th, 22:20.6) and Emily Burd (61st, 22:33.3). Renee Phillips rounded out the SDSU top five (70th, 23:05.7).
Other Aztec competitors included Naomi Smitham (71st, 23:06.4), Lauren Harper (72nd, 23:15.2) and Bailey Watts (73rd, 23:15.7).
Three Aztecs improved their time from their previous race. Emily Burd had a 22 second improvement, Naomi Smitham bested her time by 21 seconds and Renee Phillips had an improvement of eight seconds.
New Mexico won the team competition, placing four runners in the top seven and five in the top ten. Air Force's Mahala Norris took first place, finishing in 19:57.7.
Team Results
1. New Mexico – 29
2. Boise State – 54
3. Colorado State – 84
4. Utah State – 104
5. Air Force – 155
6. Wyoming – 172
7. Nevada – 174
8. San Diego State – 229
9. UNLV – 295
Fresno State – Did not compete.
Top Five Individual Results & SDSU (Out of 86 runners)
1. Mahala Norris (Air Force) – 19:57.7
2. Adva Cohen (New Mexico) – 20:02.3
3. Tyler Beling (Boise State) – 20:09.2
4. Amelia Mazza-Downie (New Mexico) – 20:11.7
5. Olivia Johnson (Boise State) – 20:13.4
45. Jessica Kain (SDSU) – 21:49.4
52. Carlene Masar (SDSU) – 22:05.3
56. Amber Elias (SDSU) – 22:20.6
61. Emily Burd (SDSU) – 22:33.3
70. Renee Phillips (SDSU) – 23:05.7
71. Naomi Smitham (SDSU) – 23:06.4
72. Lauren Harper (SDSU) – 23:15.2
73. Bailey Watts (SDSU) – 23:15.7
Aztecs Compete at MW Championships
