THIS WEEK'S SCHEDULE
Friday, October 9
San Jose State at San Francisco Invite, San Francisco, Calif.
Saturday, October 10
Nevada at WAC Preview Open, Reno, Nevada
Utah State at WAC Preview Open, Reno, Nevada
Louisiana Tech at Watson Ford Invite, Clinton, Miss.
WAC TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Boise State Broncos
Sawyer Bosch placed third overall out of 198 runners, finishing as the top Bronco for the second time this season at the Willamette Invitational … he ran a time of 24:13.72 over the 8K course … he was named WAC Athlete of the Week for his effort … the Bronco men now have two first place finishes as well as a second place finish on the season … Shannon Porter was the team leader for the third straight meet for the Bronco women ... she earned a sixth place finish out of a field of 203 runners … the Bronco women have been led by Shannon Porter all season, earning their lowest finish of the season this week … the meet was made up of 19 teams.
Fresno State Bulldogs
The Fresno State men competed in blue division, a race that included seven nationally ranked teams, finishing 22nd ... the men finished close to each other, as the first four Bulldogs finished within 32 seconds of each other. Erick Garcia led the way at 24:59, followed by Frank Sanders, who timed a 25:07… on the women’s side, Fresno State finished eighth in the 20-team Gold Division of the Notre Dame Invitational ... all seven of Fresno State’s racers all completed the 5K in under 21 minutes and the team’s five scorers all easily finished under 20 minutes to average just over six minutes a mile, a first for the Bulldogs in nearly two years. Roxanne Sellick led the team, finishing fifth.
Hawai‘i Rainbow Wahine
Hawai‘i placed 10th at the Bill Dellinger Invitational Friday at the Springfield Country Club ... the Rainbow Wahine made their first appearance in the highly competitive field, which included host and second-ranked Oregon ... fifth-ranked Villanova won the women’s team title with 22 total points ... for the Rainbow Wahine, junior Ashley Aitken set a huge personal best with a time of 17:53.10, placing 44th overall and leading the UH contingent of eight runners ... senior Jessica Forrester, a transfer from Tampa where she was a Division II All-American, completed the 5K course in 18:10.66 to finish 53rd overall, while Mariana Monasi was close behind with a personal best 18:28.76 for 60th place.
Idaho Vandals
Teegan Schoch won the women’s title at the Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational in dominant fashion with a time of 17:26.92, which was 21 seconds faster than the next-best finisher in the 203-runner field … her time was 48 seconds faster than her performance at the same race in 2008 … she received WAC Athlete of the Week honors for her performance … every Idaho runner who competed in the race last season improved her time by at least 11 seconds over the 2008 race … Markus Geiger finished fifth for the men with a time of 24:23.43, which was a 56-second improvement over his 2008 time at the race.
Louisiana Tech
Chelsea Dressle led Louisiana Tech for the second consecutive week as the Lady Techsters finished fifth at the Centenary College Invitational ... Dressle’s time of 25:14 placed her 10th overall as she led LA Tech ... Kristen Loy, who ran the 5k race in 25:29, placed 20th overall while Shante Benion placed 28th for the Lady Techsters ... Monique Wright (33rd), Stacia Hanneman (38th) and Sapphira Brown (39th) all finished in the top 40 for the Lady Techsters ... Louisiana Tech’s women’s team returns to action at the Choctaw Open in Clinton, Miss. on Oct. 17 in the Lady Techsters’ final tune-up before the Western Athletic Conference Championships in Reno, Nev. on Oct. 31.
Nevada Wolf Pack
Nevada did not compete last week ... The team will host the WAC Preview Open Saturday morning at Rancho San Rafael Park ... he men’s 8K race will take place at 10 a.m. followed by the women’s 5K race at 10:45 a.m. ... women’s teams participating include Nevada, Sacramento State and Utah State. Sacramento State is the lone men’s team competing but the men’s field will also include several open runners.
New Mexico State Aggies
Courtney Schultz placed 30th out of 211 competitors at the Cowboy Jamboree in Stillwater, Okla., Oct. 3 … she has led the Aggies in the past three race … she clocked a time of 18:12.80 in the women’s 5k race, helping her team to a 10th-plce finish …clocking a career-best time of 25:22.80, sophomore Ian Ruybalid led the NM State men at the Cowboy Jamboree in Stillwater, Okla. Ruybalid’s time earned him 59th place, helping the Aggie to an 11th-place finish, overall … freshmen Ryan Fenton and Jonah Ruybalid finished just behind Ian Ruybalid. Jonah finished with a time of 26:01.10, good for 98th place.
San Jose State Spartans
San Jose State finished in sixth place out of 19 at Willamette’s Charles Bowles Invitational in Salem, Oregon on Saturday ... the Five Spartan finishers: Alfredo Coronado(6), Irvin Garcia(41), David Haefele(45), Sterling Granger(79), and Alan Shelton(88) combined for a team score of 234 ... Alfredo Coronado, San Jose State’s top finisher, ran the 8K course in 24:24.88, just over one minute ahead of the next Spartan finisher Irvin Garcia(25:28.12) ... Senior David Haefele finished 45th with a 25:32.59, and Sterling Granger finished 79th with a 25:56.00. Alan Shelton rounded out San Jose State’s scorers with a finishing time of 26:10.24.
Utah State Aggies
Utah State men’s cross country team finishes ninth at the 54th Annual Notre Dame Invitational Friday in South Bend, Ind. ... sophomore Brian McKenna was the Aggies top finisher for the third-straight time this season, placing 24th overall clocking in at 24:19 in the 8k ... McKenna was followed by senior Jason Holt in 51st place, clocking in at 24:47. Following close behind Holt was freshman Daniel Howell (24:48) in 53rd ... other finishers for the men included senior Steve Strickland (24:52) in 60th place ... n the women’s side sophomore Jessi Chugg was the Aggies’ leading runner, finishing 121st in 18:26. Chugg was also the Aggies’ top finisher in their last race, the Montana State Invite.
WAC NOTES
BOISE STATE’S BOSCH AND IDAHO’S SCHOCH NAMED CROSS COUNTRY ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
Boise State’s Sawyer Bosch and Idaho’s Teegan Schoch have been named the Western Athletic Conference men and women’s Cross Country Athletes of the Week, respectively, for Sept. 28-Oct. 4.
Bosch, a junior from Portland, Oregon (Borah HS), was Boise State’s top finisher at the Willamette Charles Bowles Invitational in Salem, Oregon last week. Bosch crossed the finish line in third place overall out of 198 runners with an 8K time of 24:13.72. Bosch’s time helped the Broncos to a second place team finish at the event.
Schoch, a sophomore from Kelowna, B.C., Canada (Kelowna Secondary), won the title at the Willamette Charles Bowles Invitational. Schoch cut the tape with a 5K time of 17:26.92, which was 21 seconds faster than the next-best finisher in the 203-runner field. Schoch’s time was 48 seconds faster than her performance at the same race in 2008. Her score helped the Vandal women to a third place team finish out of 19 schools in attendance.
Other Men’s Nominees: Erick Garcia, Fresno State; Markus Geiger, Idaho; Ian Ruybalid, New Mexico State; Alfredo Coronado, San Jose State; Brian McKenna, Utah State.
Other Women’s Nominees: Shannon Porter, Boise State; Roxanne Sellick, Fresno State; Courtney Schulz, New Mexico State; Jessie Chugg, Utah State.
WAC CHAMPIONSHIP
The 2009 WAC Cross Country Championship travels to Reno, Nevada. This year’s championships will be held Saturday, Oct. 31 at the Rancho San Rafael Park. Utah State swept both the men’s and women’s championships last year.
October 31, 2009
Reno, Nevada
Host: Nevada
Rancho San Rafael Park
Admission: Free
NCAA REGIONALS
The 2009 Cross Country Regionals will be held at nine sites throughout the country, Saturday, Nov. 14. WAC teams will be represented in three locations. The West Region will be held in Eugene, Ore. (University of Oregon). The Mountain Region will be held in Albuquerque, N.M. (University of New Mexico), while Louisiana Tech will be the lone team in the South Central Regional (Baylor) in Waco, Texas.
November 14, 2009
Great Lakes Region - Indiana University
Mid Atlantic Region - University of Maryland
Midwest Region - Missouri State University
Mountain Region - University of New Mexico
Northeast Region - Boston University
South Region - University of Alabama
South Central Region - Baylor University
Southeast Region - University of Louisville
West Region - University of Oregon
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS – The 2009 Cross Country National Championships once again travels to Terre Haute, Ind. and Wabash Valley Family Sports Center. Indiana State is the host for this year’s Championships.
November 23, 2009
Wabash Valley Family Sports Center
Terre Haute, Ind.
Host: Indiana State University
Ticket Info: 812/237-4040