San Francisco, CA -- I'm pleased to report that the Chico State cross country teams have once again raced to a pair of CCAA cross country titles. For the men it was title number 14 in a row, breaking the record for most consecutive CCAA team titles that had been held by the Cal Poly SLO women of the '80's-90's. The Chico women would also add to an impressive streak while winning their 8th straight conference crown. Taking into consideration the past 14 years, a total of 28 CCAA Championships have been run and the 'Cats have won 26 of these runs.

It's been quite a ride, and Sunday's racing was certainly a microcosm of this roller coaster ride that has led to these amazing streaks. Before carrying into the blow by blow descriptions of the races, I have to give a HUGE shout out to all of our fans who made the trip to San Francisco this weekend. As I mentioned in my post race talk to the 150+ group of supporters, an event is truly an event when people come to support and take it in.? We are so fortunate to have such an Awesome group of supporters and we're grateful for the love that was shown on Sunday. Now onward to the races!

Women's 6k Championship: In looking at NCAA rankings going into Sunday's women's race, the fifth ranked Wildcats were heavy favorites. Only Pomona's women (ranked 25th) were listed on the NCAA polls. True evaluation of results from the year told another story though. UCSD's women had won the Pre-Nationals invitational in Joplin, MO in late September and has shown potential for Top 10 NCAA running if they could just put the pieces together correctly.

In fact, the entire conference had taken steps forward in 2015 which would mean that higher scores than normal would most likely be posted by the top teams at the end of the day. The 'Cats stepped to the line knowing that it would be a challenge to place 4-5 athletes among the All CCAA Top-15 team, and that San Diego could potentially tip the cart if a slip-up occurred. As a consequence the Chico women were prepared for a fast and furious start, with the pre-race talks focusing on keeping a cool head as others ran off emotions in the early going.

At the gun, this was indeed the case as the 'Cats were out fast, but still buried in the quick moving field. As the leaders approached the mile mark it was clear that the Chico women were not winning the race, but they were placed well among a still tightly bunched field. Sadie Gastelum, McCall Habermehl and Quetta Peinado ran among a lead group that was 15-20 strong.

As the pack approached 3k (1/2 way mark) Chico's Sadie Gastelum had taken over the lead position of a lead pack of 15 women. Habermehl was tucked into the middle of this group while teammate Quetta Peinado was holding on to the tail end of the pack. Lora James and Alex Burkhart ran among a small chase group 5-10 seconds in arrears of the leaders, and teammates Olivia Watt, Haley Kroll, and Nicole Anthony operated in a much larger group that contained places 20-40. Although yours truly is not great at scoring races without actually seeing results, I would guess that the 'Cats were in a dead heat with San Diego at mid race.

The second half of the race brought some great progress by the Chico women who took places with each kilometer covered. As the massive Chico cheering contingent belted out the "CHHHHIIIIIICCCCCOOOOOO" chant the athletes took it in and continued to press. Knowing she didn't have the closing speed of Humboldt's defending champ Kori Gilley or Monterey Bay's star Hannah Bell, Sadie Gastelum made a break from the field during the final 2k revolution. With just over a kilometer remaining Gastelum had a 25-30 meter lead over the now scattering lead pack, and teammate McCall Habermehl ran shoulder to shoulder with the other pre-race favorites. Quetta Peinado was struggling a bit, but held on tight around 10th position and Lora James followed not far behind as she worked to bring in a few of the quick starters that were now fading from the lead pack.

Alex Burkhart who's dealt with an assortment of injuries this season was hurting, but managing some major damage control. Storming through the field from the mile mark was Haley Kroll, who was enjoying only her second cross country race since the 2013 season, ends up challenging Burkhart for the final scoring position. Olivia Watt and RS frosh Nicole Anthony had moved up nicely and looked set for a strong finish.

As the leaders swung out of the forested area and onto the 300+ meter long Speedway Meadow finish stretch, it was a great sight watching Sadie Gastelum running at the front of the field. What made this view even better was the fact that teammate McCall Habermehl had caught Sadie and the two were clear of the field and en route to a 1-2 finish!! With our top 2 scoring 3 points between them, our chances for the team title took a huge step forward. The Wildcats dodged a bullet as Monterey Bay's NCAA 1500m qualifier Hannah Bell closed extremely well to place a very uncomfortablely close third although last year's CCAA champ Kori Gilley (Humboldt St.) was never really in contention the second half of the race and would finish 6th. Quetta Peinado would give the 'Cats 3 in the top-10 as she crossed the finish 10th overall. Lora James held on to 15th place, earning her first All CCAA honor.

Finishing very strong was the Chico 5-8 pack. Alex Burkhart would stop the 'Cats scoring with her 18th place finish edging teammate Haley Kroll who took 19th with Nicole Anthony (23rd), and Olivia Watt (24th) finishing just a few seconds behind. This entire group would flood the finish in front of San Diego's fifth and final scorer, helping to ensure the team's victory. Julie Finn who had been sick with the flu most of the week leading up to the championships would place 40th, and teammate Danielle Oden would cross the line 53rd in the 113 runner field.

At the end of the day the Lady 'Cats had earned a hard fought 38-61 point battle over UCSD and the rest of the field. It was the 'Cats 8th straight CCAA title, and 12th in 14 years. With the individual win McCall Habermehl moved herself into elite company with the former 'Cats who won CCAA XC titles.

The list of Chico Women CCAA Cross Country Champions has now reached six! 2004: Jen James, 2006: Mary Torres, 2010: Kara Lubieniecki, 2011: Alia Gray, 2013: Ayla Granados, 2015: McCall Habermehl

Men's 8k Championship: The Chico men knew that Cal Poly Pomona had plans to give them a tough run from the gun, and this was indeed the case. As the leaders ran by yours truly at the quarter mile mark Pomona occupied the top 8-9 spots, with a sea of maroon on their heels. As the lead pack streamed through the mile mark not a lot had changed, as Pomona's group was still controlling the pace, but now the 'Cats occupied a few of the top 10 spots in the field. As the race progressed into the middle kilometers the reality of the hot pace took it's toll on Pomona And Chico runners as one by one the once 20-25 strong lead group whittled down to a more manageable size. Surprisingly some of the Top-'Cats coming into the CCAA race Falco DiGiallonardo, Kyle Medina, Caton Avilla and Connor Fisher (all of whom have scored for the 'Cats this season) eventually peeled from the pace.

As the race approached the 6k point it was Chico's Steven Martinez that made a move from the front that only his roommate (Will Reyes) could handle. Surprisingly Pomona's Mark Huizar and Francisco Gomez (both have run sub 24 8k's this season) were unable to respond, and soon the Chico pair had a sizeable lead on the nearest competition. While Reyes and Martinez were sealing up the 'Cats second 1-2 finish on the day, a youthful group of teammates were doing some great work among the top-15 pack. Nick Valenzuela (Soph) had stuck with the front group until the big move was made and was now covering Pomona's Gomez. Frosh Arturo Arevalo and Junior Aaron Mora were also operating well inside the top-10 and appeared ready for strong finishes. RS frosh Steven Velarde looked very strong as he battled Pomona's true frosh Devon Reed (9:01-3200m PR in HS) just outside the top-10 overall.

As the leaders swung onto the Speedway Meadow finish stretch it was deja-vu all over again as Reyes and Martinez strode toward the finish line in convincing 1-2 fashion. SF State's Benji Preciado who'd run a brilliant second half of the race would outkick Huizar for third and Pomona's Gomez would cross in fifth overall. Chico would end any potential upset thoughts by taking places 6,7, and 8 with solid efforts from Nick Valenzuela, Arturo Arevalo, and Aaron Mora. Chico's #6 on the day Steven Velarde (fr) would place 11th as he was sandwiched by Pomona's 3/4 runners across the line. Caton Avilla (21st), Connor Fisher (30th), Kyle Medina (41st), and Falco DiGiallonardo each had rough days in the CCAA office.

By placing 5 among the top 8 overall the 'Cats enjoyed another miniscule CCAA score (24 this year) and as mentioned previously, sealed up a CCAA record 14th straight title. Will Reyes earned Newcomer of the Year as well as CCAA Runner of the Year with his win. Will becomes the 8th straight Wildcat male to win the CCAA individual title. Reyes, Martinez, Arevalo and Velarde would earn ALL CCAA honors in their first championship run. Soph Nicholas Valenzuela would earn his second straight distinction. The Chico men would also average an impressive 24:40 on the SF layout, that appears to run at least 30 seconds slower than some of the faster courses out there (Santa Clara/Willamette). Reyes' 24:13 time just misses the course record set by Gilliat Ghebray a former CAL standout and 13:30's 5k guy.

Chico's Male CCAA Champions: 2001: David Braund, 2003: Tyler Graff, 2005: Patrick Boivin, 2006: Charlie Serrano, 2008: Scott Bauhs, 2009: Jimmy Elam, 2010: Brent Handa, 2011: Adrian Sherrod, 2012: Isaac Chavez, 2013: Aaron Thomas, 2014: Alex McGuirk, 2015: William Reyes

Thank You: Again I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who made the trip out to San Francisco on Sunday. The support that our teams have enjoyed through the years is unparalleled and we're so grateful for this. Thanks also to everyone for the texts and e mails. You know you're well supported when the President of the university e mails several times during a 24 hour period to wish the team well, and then to congratulate (Thanks Dr. Zingg).

We now turn our focus on to the West Region championships (to be held in Monmouth, OR on 11/7) where the 'Cats hope to earn spots to the NCAA championships. For the men, the top-4 teams will advance to Joplin, MO. On the women's side five teams will move on to the final race of the year. The biggest test for the 'Cats will surely come in the form of Alaska Anchorage, who field a very strong international line-up.

Awesome 3 minute Highlight Video: Please take the 3 minutes to check out the awesome video documentary of our CCAA day that CSUC XC Alum Karsten Kaufman put together. https://vimeo.com/143713795

Two Great CCAA Summary Articles by SID Extraordinaire Luke Reid: http://www.chicowildcats.com/news/2015/10/25/MXC_1025154200.aspx?path=mcross http://www.chicowildcats.com/news/2015/10/25/WXC_1025154037.aspx?path=wcross