I'm happy to announce that the Wildcat distance crew enjoyed a very productive weekend at the San Francisco Distance Carnival and the Stanford Invitationals. Many NCAA marks were set and a huge number of personal records were recorded while the 'Cats enjoyed their first big weekend of the season.
I'll start by listing the marks posted at each distance and then move to some race recaps.
List of Times run by 'Cats at each distance: Men's 800m: 1:49.92- Derek Morton (So) NCAA mark, Run the day after a 3:46 1500m PR. 1:53.83- Michael Good (So) Seasonal Debut. 1:53.92- Garrett DeLong (Fr) 2 second PR! 24 hours after a 3:56 1500. 1:56.45- Matt Herrera (Red Shirting frosh): PR, 24 hours after a 4:01 1500. Women's 800m: 2:16.17- Yajaira Zarate (So), PR, 24 hours after 4:41 1500m PR. 2:16.90- Brittany Ansalmo (Jr) Seasonal Best 2:18.11- Elyssa Schall (So) Seasonal Best 2:20.23- Janae Mayfield (Sr) Seasonal Best Men's 1500m: 3:46.81- Derek Morton (So) NCAA mark, PR, First sub 3:50. 3:56.94- Garrett DeLong (Fr) First race, post injury, .5 off PR. 4:01.58- Matt Herrera (Red Shirting true frosh) PR 4:04.66- Nick Grubiss (Sr) Seasonal Best. Women's 1500m: 4:41.84- Yajaira Zarate (So) PR 5:09.35-Veronica Garcia (So) Men's Steeplechase 9:27.57- Chris Kigar (Sr) Seasonal Best Women's Steeplechase 10:21.41- Alex Burkhart (Jr) School Record, NCAA provisional .08 off NCAA Auto 10:40.49- McCall Habermehl (Sr) Seasonal Debut, NCAA provisional mark. Men's 5,000m: 13:54.87- Kyle Medina (Jr) Meet Record, NCAA Auto, #2 A.T. CSUC, 34 second PR. 14:01.50- Will Reyes (Sr) NCAA provisional, Seasonal racing debut. 14:14.16- Connor Fisher (Jr) NCAA provisional, PR, #9 A.T. CSUC 14:23.31-Jack Johnson (So) NCAA provisional, PR 15:02-Eddie King (So) Seasonal Best 15:13.53-Cameron Ashbaugh (So) PR, battling bum hamstring during race. Women's 5,000m: 16:55.23- Hannah Dorman (Jr) NCAA provisional, #7 A.T. CSUC, 1min PR! 17:06.93- Sadie Gastelum (Sr) NCAA Provisional, #10 A.T. CSUC. 17:43.85- Nora Pizzella (Fr) PR, 5k track debut. 17:52.98- Jenny Giguere (Fr) PR 19:09.98-Danielle Oden (Jr) Men's 10,000m: 30:47.63- Steven Velarde (So) NCAA Provisional, PR, First sub 31min run. 31:18.81- Daniel Harrigan-Cota (Jr) PR, 31:32.34- Wyatt Baxter (Red Shirting true Frosh) 10k Debut, Q for USATF Jr Champs 31:40.68-Andrew Cobourn (Sr) Seasonal Best. 31:54.07- Remington Breeze (Red Shirting true frosh) 10k Debut, Q for USATF JR's 32:03.88- Caton Avilla (Jr) 10k track debut. Women's 10,000m: 37:25.25- Kayden Carpenter (Fr) 10k debut 39:06.74- Hope Morgan (Red Shirting true frosh) 10k debut Men's DMR: Kyle Medina-1200 3:02 Michael Good- 400 50.9 Nick Grubiss-800m 2:00 Jack Johnson- 1600m 4:17 Total Time: 10:11 (meet record)
Race Recaps:
Men's 10,000m:
Sophomore Steven Velarde worked with teammate Caton Avilla during the early going of the men's second heat of the 10k, but Avilla fell off the pace during the third mile. Velarde continued on with a relatively even splitted 30:47 PR run for fifth in his heat. True frosh Wyatt Baxter ran a bit tentatively in the early going, but rallied late in the run to post a 31:32 debut mark for the 25 lapper. With this time Baxter achieved his goal of qualifying for this summer's USATF junior championships which will be held in Sacramento. Andrew Cobourn lost contact with the pack early and struggled home with a 31:40 outing. In the third heat true frosh Remmington Breeze ran a very even splitted 31:55 debut. He will now join teammate Baxter on the line at the USA meet this summer as well.
Women's 10,000m:
RS Frosh Kayden Carpenter has endured a host of setbacks this new year but is bouncing back nicely. On Friday she ran a VERY even splitted debut over the 10k distance. If you toss out her first and last laps (95/86) she ran either 89 or 90 second laps in 21 of the 23 laps. As her body continues to cooperate with her and she gains fitness, look out for future 10k success from Carpenter who appears to be wired well for the distance, both mentally and physically. True frosh Hope Morgan also enjoyed a solid debut over the 25 lap distance posting a 39:06 final time.
Men's Steeplechase: Senior Chris Kigar sliced off 15 seconds from his seasonal debut run in Sacramento several weeks ago with his 9:27 run on Friday. Chris has a history of working well through seasons, so I would expect more improvements in the coming weeks.
Women's Steeplechase: Alex Burkhart (jr) has run two steeplechase races this season and both have resulted in school records. The most recent effort was a second place finish in her heat at the Stanford Invite. Although yours truly wasn't there to witness it, Burkhart ran a mature race near the front throughout and closed well to secure the second place finish in a field of only DI talent. Alex now stands only 5-6 seconds off the All Time Division II list in the barrier event.
McCall Habermehl (Sr) has had a rough stretch of running since the 2016 track season. A nagging IT band issue undermined her summer and fall training. Thankfully she did enjoy a nice winter build-up going into the track season. Some unrelated hiccups forced us to hold off on the seasonal debut, but finally the senior from Woodcreek was able to race on Saturday. Despite running through some rough water jumps in the middle of a packed field, Habermehl managed to stay on her feet and her paces, and would finish with a fairly even splitted 10:40 final time. This puts her on the NCAA list, but in all likelihood she will need to slice 5-10 more seconds off the mark to secure her spot on the line in Florida. Given that she has a PR of 10:27 and a wealth of fire in the tank, I like her chances!
Men's 1500m:
After watching Derek Morton crush a 1:49 800m several weeks previous, the entire team (and coaching staff) was excited to see Morton run the 1500 in San Francisco on Friday. The field was stacked and there would be a pacer to take the group through 1k at 60 second pace. The Sophomore from San Diego (Mt Carmel HS) looked very good running through early splits of 60/2:00 and 3:01. In the early going he sat just on the tail end of the 7-8 man lead group, but with every lap covered Morton seemed to move up a position or two as others dropped from the pace.
With 300m remaining Derek ran in second place and now put his efforts into tracking down Roots Running Andy Phillips (a 3:43 guy at Gonzaga several years ago). As the pair ran by the Chico tent, the noise level was deafening. As the two hit the final straight Morton passed Phillips, only to see the vet pass him back just before the line. Phillips would take the win by a scant .37 seconds, but Morton would hold on nicely for a 3:46.81 final time.
Derek has now secured marks in both the 800 and 1500 to make his first NCAA Championships meet.
Derek's HS teammate Garrett DeLong (Fr) would log a nice 3:56 1500 despite having missed a fair amount of training several weeks ago.
Women's 1500m:
Sophomore Yajaira Zarate continues to shave seconds off her times and would record a heat win and PR of 4:41 on Friday. A 51-52 final 300m shows that a sub 4:40 is most likely in the cards with a more evenly paced effort.
Men's 5,000m:
Unfortunately Stanford meet management didn't allow Junior Kyle Medina into their 5k fields despite his 3:41 1500m PR and excellent XC credentials, so if he were to achieve his goal of running a sub 14:00 he would most likely need to win the SF Distance Carnival (meet record-14:03) or be right in the top group. Teammate Will Reyes wasn't initially slated to run this meet, given that he missed the entire winter break of running as he nursed an NCAA XC injury. With only 8 weeks of running behind him Will was a late addition to the field as recent workouts had indicated that he was in at least 14:0's shape. Thankfully for the guys, there were two International athletes with 13:30's PR's in the field, as well as a host of top DI collegiates from across the country who were hoping for the chance to become a 13-something runner.
The lead pack ended up running a pace just above 14:00 for much of the race, hitting 4:30/9:01 splits at 1600 and 3200m. Medina, Reyes, and former Wildcat Anthony Costales bided their time toward the back of this main group that was nearly 15 strong at 3200m. During the final mile Reyes and Medina methodically moved to the front of the dwindling main pack and with 1k remaining Reyes had the lead and Medina ran in third. For a brief window Medina, Reyes and Air Force star Kyle Eller broke from the pack and looked as though they might stay free to the finish. Over the final 600m the pace tightened and Estonia's Tidrek Nurmi and Mexico's Juan Jose Esparza asserted themselves and joined Medina and Eller at the front. Reyes' lack of base finally caught up with him as he wasn't able to respond to the quickening tempo. From 600m out, to 200 to go, Medina recorded a 63 second revolution and Eller, Nurmi, and Esparza ran stride for stride with the Chico standout. With 3:41 wheels in his back pocket, Medina hit another gear over the final 200m and closed with a 29.0 to seal the victory. Kyle's 13:54 winning mark broke the meet record and made him the third Wildcat to eclipse the 14:00 barrier. Reyes would finish with his second best 5k time to date with an impressive 14:01. Anthony Costales (3 time CCAA 5k champ while running for the 'Cats) would hold on for a 14:02 PR.
End of an Era: Medina's remarkable run spelled the end of a long stay on our school's All Time 5k list. Back in 1973 a mustached Portuguese-American Eddie Silva set the Chico State 5k school record of 14:15 on a dirt oval. This record would stand as the school's top mark for over 30 years before Charlie Serrano would eclipse it. Of course Serrano would go on to win the NCAA 5k title the following year. Through the years since, Silva's mark has slowly been bumped by the solid runs of many All Americans, including Scotty Bauhs, Will Reyes, Adrian Sherrod and Alex McGuirk, and Dayne Gradone. On Friday Silva's long time standard was unceremoniously bumped from the list with Medina's sub 14 effort. Silva, a long time Wildcat supporter since his graduation, will be missed on the list, but his efforts on the ovals will never be forgotten.
Junior Connor Fisher went into the weekend with a 5k PR of 14:29 set two seasons ago. With a breakout XC season behind him and a 9:02 steeple debut under his belt Fisher set out to lower his 5k best. In a testament to just how much the SF State meet has grown in quality Connor ran in the second fastest heat and rolled through 3200m in 9:07 (PR) and was just inside the top-8 of the race. Competing well over the tough final mile Connor would finish 4th in his heat lowering his PR to 14:14.16. The new personal best also moved him into 9th position on our all time 5k list, bumping off XC All American Dayne Gradone.
Perhaps the biggest breakthrough of the day came in the form of Jack Johnson. The RS Sophomore from La Costa Canyon HS didn't make our roster his first year on campus. Hard work and committed training Just earned him a spot on the roster his second year. As a RS frosh Johnson showed that his roster spot was no "gift" as he posted an impressive 14:43 PR at the SF Distance meet. This year the sophomore had the goal of averaging 70 seconds per lap or faster to hopefully lower the pr into the 14:30 range.
Running in the 3rd fastest heat of the day Johnson ran a very similar race as his teammate Connor Fisher had several minutes before. Johnson rolled through 1600 and 3200 at even splits just under 70 seconds per lap (9:18-3200m). Rolling through the last mile with a full head of steam Johnson had moved into the top-5 of the race and looked great. A solid kick would see Jack hit the line in a huge 20 second Personal best of 14:23! In crunching the numbers a bit Jack had covered the final 1600m around 4:30 meaning that his final 3200m was under 9:10.
Note: Each week the USTFCCCA releases the top programs in each event for DII. They take the average of the top-4 athletes on the team in each event and develop a national list per event. With the 'Cats 13:54/14:01/14:14/14:23 marks, they should be sitting atop DII after this weekend of racing (14:08 average).
Women's 5,000m:
Sadie Gastelum and Hannah Dorman would run in the second heat of the women's 5k and both appeared to be in fitness that might allow for a sub 17 run if all went well. Gastelum had been a bit under 100 percent in the week leading up to the race, but did a good job of locking into race mode as we began our trip.
As the race began two top seeds slipped from the main field running sub 80 second laps from the gun. Dorman ran among the top-10-15 initially and Gastelum ran just a few spots back from Dorman in the first few laps. As the race approached 1600m Dorman took the front of the large chase group and Gastelum attempted to begin a push from the pack and toward the two leaders ahead. Splitting Sadie's 5th lap at 78 seconds (a touch faster than her 3k PR pace) caused a grimace on the face of yours truly. Sadie would try unsuccessfully to catch the pair ahead and by 3200m it was apparent that the chase pack would absorb the slowing athlete.
Leading the chase pack throughout was Dorman who had no qualms with the fact that she was on pace to break her PR by an entire minute. Early in the third mile Gastelum was caught by the main pack with teammate Hannah Dorman still driving the chase pack with a string of 81-second revolutions. As the race reached the final 800m several of the women from the chase pack made their way around Dorman. Gastelum fell from the group, but had damage control well in place and was still on PR pace. A solid close by Dorman secured her first ever sub 17 minute 5k run with a 16:55 final time. Gastelum would hold on for a bitter-sweet 17:06 run chopping 12 seconds from her previous best. Both marks are NCAA provisional standards. Hannah became the 'Cats 8th ever sub 17 minute runner and now stands #7 on the All Time list. Gastelum's new PR moves her into 10th all time CSUC.
Note: With the new inclusion of Gastelum and Dorman onto the top-10 list, two former All Americans were bumped from the list. NCAA 3k champ Sarah Montez departs the list after a near 10 year run, and Sarah Mikesell (Top-15 NCAA XC) also falls from the charts. Both still stand on the AT lists in the 3k and 10k though.
True frosh Nora Pizzella has enjoyed a great freshman year to date. She ran inside the 'Cats top-5 throughout their trophy season this fall, and was the CCAA frosh of the year in XC. Track season has brought good fitness, but some interrupted training as Grass Valley native has dealt with some tender shins throughout the season. Despite taking nearly almost the entire week off running 3 weeks previous to the SF meet, Nora managed a very impressive run. A very well executed and evenly splitted run gave Pizzella a 20th place heat finish and a 17:43 debut time for the 5k! With more consistency between now and her next attempt, expect Pizzella to take some nice steps forward in the coming weeks and years.
A year ago red shirting true frosh Jenny Giguere finished 139th of 141 finishers in the women's 5k at the SF Distance Carnival. A lot has happened since that race, and almost all of it has included some big steps forward. The RS Frosh from Westlake Village, CA took a huge step forward on Friday notching a 17:52 PR for the 5k, despite sickness that has interrupted her training leading into the run. Giguere certainly stands as an athlete to watch in the coming weeks and years as she continues to develop and thrive.
Men's 800m:
Sophomore Derek Morton continued his hot streak while running a 1:49.9 800m just 24 hours following his 3:46 1500m PR. The race itself wasn't his best tactical piece of work but the Mt Carmel HS product ran with a lot of heart. Running in around 10th position at 500m Morton passed nearly the entire field on the backstretch, settling into second position behind Adams State's multi time NCAA Champion Oliver Atchison. The hard move proved to be costly as Atchison held his position and pace, while Morton faded a touch over the final 100m falling back to 4th position by the finish. The great news here was that even during a poor tactical effort, Morton is still a sub 1:50 guy. He has now run two 1:49 800m races and a 3:46 1500 in the past several weeks.
In a later heat fellow San Diego natives Garrett Delong (Fr- Mt Carmel HS) and Michael Good (So-Westview HS) ran to solid 1:53 outings. For DeLong this was a nice 2 second PR and followed his 3:56 1500 the previous day. Good's effort was his season opener after having missed most of the winter training due to a bout of Mononucleosis.
Women's 800m:
All 4 of our 800m women would take steps forward on Saturday. Brittany Ansalmo (Jr), Yajaira Zarate (So), Elyssa Schall (So) and Janae Mayfield (Sr) would all record at least seasonal bests.
Zarate would run a 2:16 PR while winning her heat, just 24 hours after a personal best 1500 run. Ansalmo would also run to a 2:16 seasonal best in her heat. Schall would crack the 2:20 mark for the first time since HS with her 2:18 run. Mayfield would barely miss the 2:20 threshold with her 2:20.23 final time.
Men's DMR:
It was a bit of a last minute decision to put together a DMR team for Saturday's distance carnival but in hindsight I'm so glad we did. Kyle Medina would give the 'Cats a lead over a tough Jacuzzi Boys club team with a nice 3:02 carry that included a 59 second final revolution. Michael Good (only 1 hour removed from his 1:53 season debut) would hold the 'Cats lead with a nice 50 second split for 400m. Nick Grubiss would surrender the lead, but kept things close enough for a potential victory with his 2:00 effort over 800m. Jack Johnson (4:00 1500m PR) was fresh off his 14:23 PR the day before, but looked remarkably fresh as he quickly caught and passed his competition in the first lap of an eventual 4:17.0 final leg of the run. The 'Cats crew would take the win in a meet record 10:11. It really is too bad the DMR is not an official event in outdoor track!
Next up: The 'Cats will move their sights on the upcoming Chico Twilight this weekend. Most will contest 1500's and an Invitational mile on Saturday night. For those interested our top men including Kyle Medina, Derek Morton and Will Reyes will tackle the mile distance under the lights on Saturday evening. Pacers will be employed to get the crew through 1k at an even 60 seconds per lap clip. Come check out the action, as running starts around 6pm on Saturday and the mile takes place around 8:30pm.
