THIS WEEK IN THE WAC
Thursday, Sept. 23 Location
New Mexico State at Lori Fitzgerald Invite, Santa Teresa, N.M.
Saturday, Sept. 25 Location
Boise State at Bob Firman Invitational, Boise, Idaho
Boise State at Roy Griak Invitational, St. Paul, Minn.
Fresno State at Stanford Invtiational, Palo Alto, Calif.
Hawai'i at Chaminade Invitational "B", Waipahu, O'ahu
San Jose State at Memphis Twilight Classic, Memphis, Tenn.
TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Boise State Broncos
The Boise State cross country teams began the season at the Roger Curran Invitational Sept. 11 ... the Broncos had a strong showing as they swept the men's and women's team titles, while also earning a 1-2 finish in the men's race and a second-place individual finish in the women's race ... freshman Drew O'donoghue-McDonald won the men's 6-kilometer race with a time of 18:15.49 ... on the women's side, six of the top-seven Broncos were freshmen ... freshman Emma Bates was the top finisher placing second overall in the 4-kilometer race ... the Broncos will continue their season Sept. 25 at the Bob Firman Invitational and the Roy Griak Invitational.
Fresno State Bulldogs
The Fresno State women's cross country team dropped a dual meet against Cal State Bakersfield, 18-41, on Sept. 18 in Bakersfield, Calif. ... junior Stevie Brumwell led the way for the Bulldogs, finishing fourth overall with a time of 19:07 on the 5k course ... Brumwell was followed by sophomore Taylor Votaw, who finished sixth, and sophomore Kelsey Smith, who finished eighth overall ... the Bulldogs return to action on Sept. 25 as both the men and women compete at the Stanford Invitational in Stanford, Calif.
Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine
The Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine cross country team came away with the team title at the UH Big Wave Invitational Sept. 18 ... senior Ashley Aitken won the individual title with a time of 14:57.66 on the 4K course ... redshirt freshman Kevyn Murphy took third with a time of 15:33.78, while freshman Alison Williams took fifth at 15:44.31 ... Hawai'i led the team standings with 34 points, beating out BYU-Hawai'i (40), while Hawai'i Pacific finished third with 56 points, followed by Chaminade (111) ... next up for the Rainbow Wahine is the Chaminade Invitational on Sept. 25 in Waipahu, O'ahu.
Idaho Vandals
The Vandal women took second, while the men took third at the Sundodger Invitational in Seattle, Wash., Sept. 18 ... sophomore Barry Britt broke an Idaho record for the course in the men's 8K race, finishing sixth overall with a time of 24:12.58 ... Hannah Kiser broke the Vandal women's freshman record, finishing ninth overall on the 5K course in 21:30.79 ... both runners were competing in Idaho uniforms for just the second time in their careers ... next up for the Vandals is the Charles Bowles Invitational Oct. 2, in Salem, Ore.
Louisiana Tech
In its first meet of the season, the Louisiana Tech cross country team hosted the annual Mook 4 cross country meet at Lincoln Parish Park in Ruston, La., ... the men's team swept the competition with wins over Centenary, Grambling State and Northwestern State ... Tech's men placed four runners in the top five with Matt Wolfe leading the way, finishing second overall with a time of 20:13 in the 6,400 m race... the women placed third with sophomore Lauren Gilbert leading the way, as she finishing third overall with a time of 16:16 in the 4,000 m race... Louisiana Tech returns to action on Oct. 4, as the program competes at the Northwestern State Invitational.
Nevada Wolf Pack
The Nevada cross country team finished fifth out of nine teams Sept. 18 at the Sundodger Invitational in Seattle, Wash., ... senior Jenifer McEntire was the top Wolf Pack runner, placing 15th out of 93 runners with a time of 21:53 ... sophomore Samantha Diaz followed finishing 20th with a time of 22:07 ... Nevada will be back in action Oct. 2, as the Wolf Pack will host the Nevada Chase Race held at Rancho San Rafael Park.
New Mexico State Aggies
The New Mexico State cross country teams finished well at their host meet, the Kachina Classic, as both the men and the women placed second overall on Sept. 18 ... the Aggies were led by sophomore Camille Schultz on the women's side and junior Kevin Taft on the men's side ... both placed fourth overall with Schultz finishing the women's 5K race in a time of 17:32 and Taft leading the men in the 8K race with a time of 25:26 ... NM State's next meet is the Lori Fitzgerald Invitational on Sept. 23 in Santa Teresa, N.M.
San Jose State Spartans
The San Jose State women's cross country team finished in fourth place in a field of 24 schools, while the men claimed 14th out of 25 at the UC Riverside Open on Sept. 18 ... the women were paced by Elizabeth Raymond, as she was the Spartans' top finisher claiming 16th place in the 5K race ... senior Alfredo Coronado once again was the top runner for the Spartan men as he claimed eighth place overall in the 8K race with a time of 24:24 ... the Spartans will continue their season at the Memphis Twilight Classic on Sept. 25 in Memphis, Tenn.
Utah State Aggies
The Utah State men's and women's cross country teams left Bozeman, Mont., with a second and third place finish after competing in the MSU Invitational Sept. 18 ... junior Brian McKenna led the Aggie men finishing second overall with a time of 25:05 in th 5-mile race, while junior Jessie Chugg claimed ninth place in the women's 3-mile run with a time of 17:42 ... the men had four Aggies finish in the top 15, while the women had three ... next up for Utah State is the Notre Dame Invitational on Oct. 1 in South Bend, Ind.
WAC NOTES
SAN JOSE STATE'S ALFREDO CORONADO AND HAWAI'I'S ASHLEY AITKEN NAMED CROSS COUNTRY ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
San Jose State's Alfredo Coronado and Hawai'i's Ashley Aitken have been named the Verizon Western Athletic Conference men and women's Cross Country Athletes of the Week, respectively, for the week of Sept. 15 - 21.
Coronado, a senior from Santa Clarita, Calif., was San Jose State's top finisher at the UC Riverside Invitational held Sept. 21. Coronado claimed eighth place, with a blistering time of 24:24.2, in a field of nearly 400 individuals represented by 25 different schools, including nationally ranked BYU (No.16), and regionally ranked UC Riverside and UC Santa Barbara. This is Coronado's second time claiming the athlete of the week award this season.
Aitken, a senior from Napier, New Zealand, claimed victory at the Big Wave Invitational after running the 4K race in a time of 14:57.66. Her performance helped the Rainbow Wahine capture the team title beating out BYU-Hawai'i, Hawai'i Pacific and Chaminade. Aitken, who was nominated last week for the same award, found redemption at the Big Wave as she was the runner-up at the invitational last season.
Other men's nominees: Barry Britt, Idaho; Kevin Taft, New Mexico State; Brian McKenna, Utah State
Other women's nominees: Hannah Kiser, Idaho; Jenifer McEntire, Nevada; Camille Schultz, New Mexico State; Jessie Chugg, Utah State
WAC CHAMPIONSHIP
The 2010 WAC Cross Country Championship travels to Moscow, Idaho. This year's championships will be hosted by the University of Idaho and will take place at the Virgil Phillips Farm County Park, Saturday, Oct. 30. The Utah State men and New Mexico State women claimed the championships last year.
Oct. 30, 2010
Moscow, Idaho
Host: University of Idaho
Admission: Free
NCAA REGIONALS
The 2010 Cross Country Regionals will be held at nine sites throughout the country on Saturday, Nov. 13. 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 Salt Lake City, Utah (University of Utah), while Louisiana Tech will be the lone team in the South Central Regional (Baylor) in Waco, Texas.
Nov. 13, 2010
Great Lakes Region - Oakland University
Mid Atlantic Region - Pennsylvania State University
Midwest Region - Bradley University
Mountain Region - University of Utah
Northeast Region - Yale University and Fairfield University
South Region - Samford University
South Central Region - Baylor University
Southeast Region - University of Louisville
West Region - University of Oregon
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
The 2010 Cross Country National Championships will once again be held in Terre Haute, Ind. at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center. Indiana State is the host for this year's Championships.
Nov. 22, 2010
Wabash Valley Family Sports Center
Terre Haute, Ind.
Host: Indiana State University
Ticket Info: 812/237-3737