DENVER ? Fresno State’s Erick Garcia and Hawai?i’s Chantelle Wilder have been named the Western Athletic Conference men and women’s Cross Country Athletes of the Week, respectively, for the week of Sept. 17 - 23.
Garcia, a freshman from Parlier, Calif. (Parlier), won the men’s 8K title with a time of 24:25 at the Pepperdine Invitational on Sept. 22. He beat UCLA’s Evan Watchempino by a second to earn the first collegiate victory of his career. Garcia posted his second-straight sub 25-minute mark of the season after placing second in last week’s Hornett Jamboree. On Saturday, Garcia led Fresno State to a fourth place finish out of 10 teams. Garcia has been Fresno State’s top runner in all three of the team’s regular season races.
Wilder, a senior from London, Ontario, Canada (John Paul II Catholic Secondary School), captured the Big Wave Invitational title on Sept. 22. Wilder bested the women’s 4K field with a time of 14:34, beating BYU’s Cecily Lemmon by five seconds to claim her second consecutive Big Wave Invite title. The senior has won three individual titles through the first three meets of the season, tallying seven for her career.
Other Men’s Nominees: Boise State freshman Sawyer Bosch finished 14th at the Bob Firman Invitational, pacing the Broncos to a second place finish ... Louisiana Tech junior Jace Benoit took first at the ULM Warhawk Invitational, helping the Bulldogs finish first ... New Mexico State freshman Michael Hart led the Aggies for a third consecutive week, placing 11th at the Kachina Classic.
Other Women’s Nominees: Boise State sophomore Hilary McClendon collected fifth place at the Bob Firman Invitational, leading the Broncos to a team championship ... Fresno State sophomore Marissa McPhail posted a personal best in the Pepperdine Invitational’s 6k to finish 14th ... New Mexico State freshman Brandi Gutierrez won the Kachina Classic, leading the Aggies to their second consecutive Kachina Classic title ... San Jose State senior Erica Sahli took ninth at the Pepperdine Invitational for her 10th career top-10 finish.