Report by LBSU
The Long Beach State men’s and women’s cross country teams finished in third place at the 65th annual Aztec Invitational hosted by San Diego State on a hot and muggy Saturday morning in Balboa Park.
Sophomore Liz Ramos led the 49ers in the women’s 5K race as she finished in second place with a time of 18:32, followed by freshmen Anne Randall in eighth (18:48) and Hillary Zator in 21st (19:49). Sophomore Jessica Barnard and freshman Kirsten Neill rounded out the top five 49ers as Barnard crossed the finish line in 39th (20:16) and Neill came in at 52nd (21:10). Sophomore Denise Nunez (21:24) completed the race in 57th and freshman Lindsey Kaplan (21:45) came in 61st.
Veronica Pohl (18:11) of Northern Arizona won the women’s race by 21 seconds over second place Ramos and third place Eliza Gawryluk (NAU) with a time of 18:35. The Lumberjacks won the team title with 29 points, followed by San Francisco (43) and LBSU (110).
On the men’s side, the 49ers were paced by sophomore Raul Arcos in the 8K as he finished in seventh with a mark of 26:19. Coming in second for The Beach, was junior Steven DeCastro in 16th (26:48), followed by senior Jacob Ainsworth in 23rd (27:13) and freshman Jared Long in 24th (27:14). Junior Josh Ruff (27:38) and freshman Naveed Kharrat (27:52) rounded out the top 40 as both runners finished in 32nd and 39th places respectively.
Jordan Chipangama of NAU claimed the individual title with a time of 25:17. The Lumberjacks came away with the men’s team championship with 16 points as NAU swept the top four spots. San Francisco (55) finished in second, followed by The Beach (77).
The 49ers return to action Sept. 26, as they travel to Northern California for the Stanford Invitational. The men’s 8K race is scheduled to start at 10:50 a.m., with the women’s 6K beginning at 11:30 a.m. Both races will take place at the Stanford Golf Course in Palo Alto.
WOMEN’S 5K – Team Results
1. Northern Arizona (29 points)
2. San Francisco (43)
3. LONG BEACH STATE (110)
4. San Diego State (113)
5. San Diego (115)
6. PLNA (138)
7. Saint Mary’s (191)
8. San Diego “B” (259)
9. San Diego Mesa (282)
10. Chapman (287)
11. Grand Canyon (317)
12. PLNA “B” (328)
LONG BEACH STATE – Individual Results
2. Liz Ramos (18:32)
8. Anne Randall (18:48)
20. Hillary Zator (19:49)
36. Jessica Barnard (20:16)
44. Kirsten Neill (21:10)
47. Denise Nunez (21:24)
50. Lindsey Kaplan (21:45)
MEN’S 8K – Team Results
1. Northern Arizona (16 points)
2. San Francisco (55)
3. LONG BEACH STATE (77)
4. San Diego (142)
5. Saint Mary’s (150)
6. San Diego Mesa (155)
7. PLNA (215)
8. Grand Canyon (222)
9. San Diego “B” (237)
10. Chapman (289)
LONG BEACH STATE – Indiviudal Results
7. Raul Arcos (26:19)
16. Steven DeCastro (26:48)
23. Jake Ainsworth (27:13)
24. Jared Long (27:16)
32. Josh Ruff (27:38)
39. Naveed Kharrat (27:52)