San Marcos, CA - I'm proud to report that the Chico State cross country squads enjoyed a pair of exciting races at this weekend's Cougar Invitational held on Cal State San Marcos' campus. The meet also served as the CCAA preview, as San Marcos will serve as the host of the CCAA meet in just over 4 weeks' time. On Saturday the Wildcat women notched their first win of the season besting 13 other teams, including NCAA 7th ranked Stanislaus State by a 2 point margin. The men would lose an absolute nail-biter to defending DIII NCAA Champs Pomona Pitzer, also by a 2 point margin. Both races were defined by solid pack running and a genuine appreciation for racing. Continue reading for brief recaps of each run.

Women's 6,000m: Top teams going into Saturday's race were Stanislaus (ranked #1 regionally and 6th nationally), Chico State (3rd in region/14th nationally, and San Marcos (5th regional ranking, 24th NCAA). From looking at top ranked Stanislaus' previous two meet results it was undeniable that their 1-3 runners were racing quite well, but their 4/5.could be a liability for them in a race with decent numbers in that area of the field. Chico's women had raced once, and lacked a low stick, but had a minimal 1-5 gap. On paper it looked like a great match-up, and as the race unfolded it truly was!

In the early going of the race Chico's Hannah Ryan hopped out to an early race lead as she had in the SF meet two weeks ago. A trio of Stanislaus women operated among a lead pack that included Ryan, several Pomona Pitzer athletes and a few Azusa runners. As was the case in SF, a group of Chico women ran near the front of the chase group that included the greater majority of those in the field.

As the race began it's second of three 2k loops Chico had a very noticeable presence in the field as no less than 6 Wildcats ran within several meters of one another, and all among the top 20-25 in the 140 runner field. Hannah Ryan now ran among the Chico pack, as did Gracie Dupuis, Katie Hawley, Marissa D'Atri, and true frosh Jaclyn Denham and Hannah Wirth.

As the race developed into the second half, it was an obvious battle for the win between the 'Cats and the Warriors of Stanislaus. Could the low sticks that Stanislaus had up front defeat the tight Chico pack? As athletes entered the track stadium for the final 300m of the run Stanislaus' Kaela Dishion had a clear route to victory, giving Stanislaus a nice 1 point shot in the arm. Stan's #2 Sabrina Garcia entered the track 6th and would hold that position. Stanislaus' #3 ran 10-15 meters in front of Chico's Katie Hawley (the Top 'Cat on the day) entering the track stadium, and the Chico athlete was relayed info that we were in a TIGHT race with Stanislaus. Katie would swing around the Stanislaus athlete to finish 8th overall. Stanislaus' Juarez would place 9th as the Warriors' #3. Chico's Denham would record her first collegiate Top-10 finish with her 10th place run as the 'Cats 2nd scorer. Hannah Ryan would finish 12th and now both squads had 3 across the line. Gracie Dupuis would finish 14th with teammate D'Atri wrapping up the 'Cats scoring with her 18th place finish (just 1 place behind Stan's #4). Outside of Hawley's pass of Juarez the other big factor in the 'Cats eventual victory was the runs of 6 and 7 runners Hannah Wirth and Paulina Guerrero (both true frosh) who would add points to Stanislaus by finishing in front of Stan's fifth and final scorer. Although she didn't displace anyone Chico frosh Alexi Steinmaus who was the 'Cats #8 on the day finished 2 places in front of Stanislaus' #5.

Given the youth and inexperience of the Chico women, this was a very rewarding and hard fought win. It also adds some major intrigue to the upcoming CCAA Championships, where the 'Cats will attempt to win their 13th straight conference title (on the same San Marcos course!). Stay tuned!

Men's 8,000m: :

In 2019 while the 'Cats were placing 3rd at the DII NCAA Championships, Pomona Pitzer's men were winning their first DIII title. On Saturday these two divisional heavyweights would meet, and the result was one heck of a battle!

The men's race was somewhat of a tactical affair from the start as the completion of the first 2k circuit left nearly the entire 120+ runner field attached, and with no significant breaks. The Chico men were decently represented among the top layer of athletes, but not to the same degree that they were 2 weeks earlier in San Francisco. Several had gotten slower starts, and the relatively narrow course made passing difficult in the early going.

The second loop brought some stretching of the field, but nothing significant. Pitzer's blue and orange kits were prominent among the lead pack and the 'Cats would need to do some serious work in laps 3 and 4 to remain undefeated on the season. Leading the way for the 'Cats at the half way point of the race were Brayden McLaughlin and Jack Emanuel (who was enjoying a seasonal breakthrough run).

As the third lap began San Marcos' Shea Vavra (43rd at NCAA's in 2019) took the front, and immediately injected some pace into the race. A pack of 11 formed at the front, and Pitzer had 4 in the group, while the 'Cats just had Emanuel and McLaughlin among the group.

6k into the race the front group was down to 9 with Vavra, and Pitzer's #1 pushing the pace from the front. Now Pitzer had only 2 in the front group, but Chico's Emanuel was just hanging onto the 9thspot.

As the fourth and final lap began Vavra switched to a gear that none of his pursuers were able to go with and the senior would eventually sail away to the victory. An elite chase group of 4 had formed behind with Chico's McLaughlin being the lone Wildcat representative among this group. Pitzer's #1 Lucas Florsheim (24:12 @ last week's Riverside Invite), Stanislaus' top runner Andrew Vazquez (1:53/3:51 track Pr's), and Azusa's Nixon Korir (9:00 steepler) joined McLauglin in the fight for runner-up honors on the day. Behind the front group, the battle between Pitzer and Chico was heating up in a big way, with 'Chico/Pitzer top athletes hogging many of the spots among the race's top-30.

Vavra would win the race convincingly with a negative splitted 24:32 on what was reportedly (from race officials) a long 8k course. Despite hitting the track in 4th position McLaughlin employed a much needed kick over the final meters to match his SF second place finish, and most importantly he beat Florsheim to the line. The Pitzer athlete would cross third, starting what would be an impressive match-up between two similar teams on the day. Pitzer's Ethan Widlansky (Top-10 at DIII NCAA's in 2019) would finish 7th, with Chico's Matt Herrera taking 8th. Pitzer would strike next with Derek Fearon taking 10th and teammate Owen Koebett taking 12th as the 3rd/4th scorers for the Sage-Hens. Jack Emanuel had given up some spots in the final lap of the run but held on for 13th as Chico's #3. Daniel Hernandez (15th), Joshua O'Neil (17th) and Rory Abberton (19th) all beat Pitzer's #5 Joseph Cox (20th) to the line, but the 4/5/6 punch wasn't quite enough to make up the points that the Sage-Hen's 2/3/4 had put up on the 'Cats low scorers. Dylan White (22nd), Omar Alvarez-Hernandez (23rd) and Cameron Duquette (24th) would give the 'Cats 9 of the top 24 finishers. Adding to the excitement/drama was the fact that places 10-27 were separated by only 14 seconds (25:00-25:14)! Although the Wildcats came up short in this one, some lessons were learned, and a great competition had taken place. Onward to the next!

The 'Cats next head to the PacNW to race in the Bill Roe Invitational in Bellingham, WA on Oct. 9