Fresno, Calif. (11/7) - The men's and women's cross country teams showed their strength at the GSAC
Championship race at Woodward Park in Fresno, Calif., Saturday.
The
17th-ranked women's team ended with 91 points, beating out #8 Concordia by four
points for third place. No. 1-ranked Azusa Pacific took the women's conference
title with 32 points, followed by #4 Biola in 2nd place with 48 points.
Freshmen Breelan Matranga and Gina Erbacci both earned all-GSAC status
in the race. Matranga finished in 18:18 for 11th place and Erbacci in 18:23 for
13th place.
"I felt really good during the race," said Matranga. "And it
was awesome how our entire top seven girls contributed to beating
Concordia."
Junior Katie Kunz ran in 18:44 for 17th place, followed by
freshman Bailey Massenburg, with a time of 18:58 for 22nd. Freshman Ashlee Szabo
ran as the fifth runner for Point Loma, finishing in 19:13 (28th). Rounding out
the top seven were freshman Cathryn Saylor (19:38) and sophomore Genieva Ozuna
(19:51).
Other finishers for the Sea Lions included junior Jennifer
Reynolds (20:26), junior Melissa Casarez (20:35), freshman Lainie Bird (21:05),
sophomore Angie Afman (21:34), freshman Anna Bray (22:22), freshman Tori Domico
(22:53), sophomore Olivia Robinson (23:40), senior Katie Browning (24:19),
junior Elyse Swift (24:39) and freshman Caitie Benson (26:29).
On the
men's side, senior Casey Kear led the Sea Lions, finishing 12th and earning
all-GSAC honors with a time of 26:16.
"I knew it was going to be a tough
race with so many guys close together," said Kear. "I felt good and made a move
after a mile and a half and then held on as best I could." Kear is in his last
season with the team, and said he felt grateful for Saturday's race.
"No
regrets," he said. "I gave it all and I'm just thankful for the opportunity to
compete."
Sophomore Will MacNeil finished in 26:46 for 25th place,
followed closely by sophomore Ryan Ernst, running in 26:53 for 26th place.
Sophomore Brant Jones ran in 27:21, finishing 37th. Freshman Alex Williams
rounded out the top five men's finishers, with a time of 29:12. Senior Orlando
Benitez finished in 31:44.
The PLNU men's team finished in seventh out of nine
GSAC schools. The Westmont men took the GSAC team title.
In addition to
the successful races, PLNU Head Coach Jerry Arvin was named the Women's GSAC
Coach of the Year. Arvin said he was pleased with the race results.
"The
girls ran the course 45 seconds faster than we've ever run it," said Arvin. "It
was a great race. Both groups did a really good job. We had a great
day."
The final men's and women's national team rankings will be posted
on the NAIA website Monday. The rankings determine which teams and individuals
will earn berths to the National Championship race in Vancouver, Wash., on Nov.
21.
-Katie Browning