The Long Beach State cross country teams completed the Stanford Invitational on Saturday morning at the Stanford Golf Course as the women’s squad finished in 11th place with 324 points and the men finished in 9th with 287 points. Host Stanford proved that home field advantages span all sports, as they finished in first place in both races.
Individually for the 49er women, senior Sarah Apgar was the top runner for The Beach as she finished in 17th place with a time of 21:52. Last year, Apgar crossed the finish line in 24th with a time of 21:45. Coming in second for the 49ers was fellow senior Kristina Wilson as she finished in 40th with a time of 22:31. Wilson surpassed her previous finish from last year’s race of 48th place (22:17). Junior Missy Barclay came in 72nd place with a time of 23:04 and senior Carly Harris crossed the line at 91st with a mark of 23:18. Finishing out for the 49ers, were freshman Stacey Flores in 119th (23:32), Alisia Barajas in 151st (24:06) and Kim Sherman in 164th (24:20). Senior Melissa Velazquez finished in 184th (24:38).
The individual winner of the women’s race was Laura Olvera of UC Irvine who led from start to finish with a time of 20:42. Jacky Kipwambok of Azusa Pacific was second with a time of 20:50.
For the men, sophomore Travis Kuhlman was the top runner for LBSU as he finished in 40th place with a time of 25:41. Kuhlman finished in 69th at last year’s race with a mark of 25:30. Freshman Raul Acros came in second for the 49ers as he finished in 55th with a time of 25:57 and sophomore Josh Ruff clocked in two seconds behind in 58th. Freshman Matt Maldonado finished in 78th (26:18), while sophomores Mark Thomas, Josh Arrieta and Steven DeCastro finished in 86th, 95th and 114th respectively.
Scotty Bauhs of Chico State used a late surge to capture the individual crown with a time of 23:45. He passed Aron Rono of Azusa Pacific late in the race for the come-from-behind victory. Rono hung on for second with a time of 23:53.
The 49ers will next be in action as they travel to LaJolla for the UC San Diego Triton Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 11. The women’s 6K race is scheduled for an 8:30 a.m. start, while the men’s 10K race will begin at 10:30 a.m.
From LBSU reports