Evansville, IN -- Each summer while at our pre-season altitude camp at Lake Tahoe, our men and women formulate goals for the season. Most years these goals include winning conference titles and hopefully finishing among the Top-4 teams at the NCAA Championships, where giant NCAA trophies are granted to these podium teams. On Saturday the 6th ranked Chico's women's team upset several squads including defending NCAA champs Grand Valley State, en-route to earning a 4th place finish, just a single point ahead of the Alaska Anchorage squad that had defeated them two weeks previous at the regional. Unfortunately, the men's team didn't enjoy quite as much success in their final outing of 2017, as several key runners struggled through a malady of setbacks during the race, that created a 70+ person spread between our #4 and 5 runners. The result was a frustrating 9th place finish for the 4th ranked 'Cats. Senior Kyle Medina's fourth place individual finish was a big highlight for the men on the day, and of course the team's performance ads to the long list of Top-10 finishes at these championships. Between genders the men and women have now combined for 34 Top-10 finishes out of the past 37 NCAA races that have included the 'Cats. We're extremely proud of this statistic and to have added to the growing legacy that is Chico State Cross Country.
Women's 6k Championship:
The conditions on race morning in Evansville, IN were actually not as bad as forecasters had projected. With a threat of heavy rains and potential electrical storms on their way, start times were moved several hours ahead and athletes were greeted by 60ish degree temps and a steady 20ish mph wind. The course was relatively flat but rains in the days leading up to the event, along with the blustery winds, seemed to slow the eventual times.
The 'Cats entered the '17 championships in a MUCH better place than they had the '16 version, where top runners Sadie Gastelum and Karlie Garcia were sick with the flu in the days and hours leading up to the race. Although Garcia had sat out the regional with some residual pain from an existing injury, she was back in uniform and ready for competition, with a LOT of swimming and a limited amount of running behind her in the previous weeks. The question for the women would be whether they could contend with an improved national scene that saw them ranked 6th , and behind 5 Really good teams. As yours truly had told the women before the race, all teams are most vulnerable at the NCAA meet, so anything could happen and we just had to do the best we could and see how things would shake out.
As the gun sounded and the field ran past yours truly at a quarter mile, the Chico women appeared to be well placed and ready to contend. At the kilometer mark the Wildcat women ran in 10th place, but all were positioned close enough to their intended targets to make this coach feel at ease with their chances. Of course this group has also proven time and time again that they know how to move up as a race evolves.
At 2k the women had moved up to 7th as a group, and senior leader Hannah Dorman ran on the heels of a 20ish woman chase pack that trailed pre-race favorite Carolyn Kurgat (Alaska). Senior Karlie Garcia was also making nice strides toward this lead group, which was a huge revelation given that her only race of the season ended with a 7th place CCAA finish. RS Frosh Alex Tucker looked great flying by running in the 70's overall. Senior Alex Burkhart appeared to be experiencing some abdominal discomfort, but was running just a few meters behind Tucker. The two Haleys (Kroll and Boynton) ran in 95th and 96th with 4k remaining.
At the mid race check-point the women had moved into 6th place, and by 4k, they sat in 5th. All of the Wildcat women were making up places and now Garcia led the chase group, at one point running second overall! As Garcia hammered at the front of the lead group Dorman (who appeared to be a bit "off" on this day) lost the group and now ran alone several strides off the leaders.
At 5k Garcia ran in 8th position, with 2nd place only a few seconds ahead, and just a few seconds in front of a number of others. Dorman ran in 18th but appeared to be catching a second wind of sorts. Alex Tucker was the 'Cats 3rd runner on the course as she now operated just a few seconds behind the final All American position around 50th overall. Burkhart was rallying and was just a few strides behind the younger Alex. Also making nice progress were both Haley's who now ran in 73rd and 76th positions. Sophomore Nora Pizzella was also running in a solid 100th position in the 250-athlete field, as the 'Cats 7th. With 1k remaining the 'Cats ran in 5th place just behind defending champs Grand Valley and just a few points ahead of Alaska Anchorage.
The final kilometer was an absolute battle for the 'Cats. Alex Tucker who had been enjoying her best race ever, hit a wall of sorts eventually collapsing on the side of the course. Without knowing this her teammates were already making up these lost points. Karlie Garcia would sprint to the finish nailing down a Chico State best 11th place finish. Dorman passed several runners in the final quarter mile to place 16th, while Alex Burkhart passed an additional 13 over the final kilo to hit the tape 42nd overall. Haley Kroll would pass 8 in the final K while placing 65th and RS frosh Haley Boynton would stop the 'Cats scoring at 70th overall. Nora Pizzella would finish up at 103rd as the 'Cats sixth, and Alex Tucker would find her way across the line 246th.
As has been customary the past several years yours truly was in the finish area, and text messages stating that we had taken 4th came flooding in from alumni from across the country who were following online. Thankfully these early reports were indeed true as the Wildcat women once again found a way to score the final trophy at the NCAA Championships.
Summarizing the women's run:
It took every last number that our women dropped over the final kilometer to reach the 1 point margin over Alaska, and especially the two AK women who were passed by Alex Burkhart to secure the most recent hardware. What an amazing day for the Wildcat women. Garcia became the top NCAA finisher ever in 'Cats history while she and teammate Dorman combined for our best 1-2 punch ever at the championships. A year ago our top runner finished 33rd at NCAA's and this year we needed two among the top-20 to have a chance. A ton of respect has to be given to senior Haley Kroll who has now scored on four separate NCAA championship teams for the 'Cats, that include three fourth place finishes and a sixth place effort. Kroll has been a rock in the 'Cats line-up since her arrival from Tokay High, and leaves with no All American honors, but a pile of team trophies and amazing memories to show for her hard work and leadership. The women have now earned 6 NCAA trophies since 2003 and have finished among the Top-10 in 16 of the past 18 NCAA Championship runs.
Men's Championship 10k:
The Chico men entered the NCAA weekend healthy and fresh off a regional victory over a tough Cal Baptist squad. On paper the top 3 teams in the NCAA appeared to be pretty solidified, with Adams State, Colorado School of the Mines and Grand Valley, having enjoyed Very stout seasons to date. The fourth spot appeared up for grabs, and even though the 'Cats had a relatively inexperienced line-up, yours truly felt that this group was ready and prepared to vie for a second straight podium finish.
At the kilometer mark of the race the 'Cats were positioned very well and actually were running in 3rd place overall, but of course most of the field ran within a 10 second spread, so everyone was still quite close. At 2k the 'Cats had slid a spot in the team scoring, but were still placed quite well and actually led eventual runners up GVSU by some 20 points.
Unfortunately the third kilometer brought more bleeding of places as the 'Cats 2,3,4,5, and 6 guys gave up precious spots and were travelling in the wrong direction in the pack.
However out near the front, senior Kyle Medina looked very controlled as he operated in a chase pack that had formed behind Tiffin's James Ngandu, the pre-race favorite for the individual title.
Just when it didn't look like things could get much worse, Jack Johnson (10th in the regional two weeks ago) ran by yours truly holding his side and making it known that he was dealing with a bad side stitch. While Johnson battled his ailment, Caton Avilla slid outside of the top-100 and eventually out of the race with an inflamed arch. While these two were battling with mid race set-backs, senior Connor Fisher 2nd in CCAA's and 8th in the region looked completely out of touch with his race even before the 4k mark. There was no denying that the 'Cats were in an awful place going into the second half of the run.
Thankfully there were some bright spots occurring for the 'Cats while the previously mentioned trio struggled. Kyle Medina ran through 5k among the leaders and still looked quite within himself. While there was no catching the front running Ngandu, 2nd through 18th places all ran within a few seconds with the second half of the run remaining. At the other end of the spectrum was Eddie King, running his first NCAA race ever, had dug himself a big hole hitting the 1k mark in 194th position but subsequently rallied well and was eating up 10-20 places with each kilometer covered. By 5k King ran in 136th, but was making nice progress with each stride. Teammates Arturo Arevalo and Teddy Kassa spent much of the race operating between 60th position and 90th, as neither were having their best days, but both were grinding well and running tough, in some difficult conditions.
King passed another 26 runners between 5k and 6k, but unfortunately Fisher and Johnson lost over 40 spots between them and one would have to be the 'Cats final scorer on the day with Avilla now on the sideline.
Over the final several kilometers the lead pack broke apart and Chico's Medina would find himself as a part of a four man pack that ran in 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th overall. Grand Valley Junior Zach Panning (already a 2 time NCAA Top-10 finisher) would eventually pull away for a 2nd place finish. Adams' top guy Kale Adams would take 3rd overall. Closing out a very solid outing Chico's Kyle Medina would place 4th, becoming the 'Cats 3rd best performer all time at these Championships behind only Scott Bauhs (1st) and Isaac Chavez (3rd). Junior Artruo Arevalo would hold on steady for a commendable 64th place finish (his best yet at NCAA's), while Teddy Kassa would cross the finish some 9 seconds back in 79th place. Rallying the entire race Eddie King would finish just 5 seconds behind Kassa in 84th. Now the wait began, as the 'Cats final scorer would take an excruciating 1:22 to find the line. In that time some 73 team points were added to the score, which ended all hopes of a podium finish. Thankfully the efforts of the front four were enough to seal an eventual top-10 finish as the 'Cats would end up 9th in the team scoring.
In reflection of the men's race, it's always difficult to swallow a performance that is well off the mark of what the team is capable, but we are certainly thankful to still be a top-10 team on such a day. Medina's run made him a three time All American, and Kassa, King and Johnson, each earned valuable NCAA experience that should bode well as we look to next year. While it's disappointing to end on such a difficult note, the 2017 men's team did win their 16th straight CCAA title, and a regional title as well. Now attention will turn on what it will take to make sure the 2018 season Ends on a much brighter note.
