Long Beach State University Athletics
Cross Country Heads To Riverside For Highlander Invitational
10/15/2015 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
2015 LONG BEACH STATE CROSS COUNTRY
Meet No. 4 (Men)/No. 3 (Women)
at Highlander Invitational
Hosted by UC Riverside
Saturday, Oct. 17, 2015
UCR Agricultural Operations Course
Riverside, Calif.
SCHEDULE
Men's 6K - 8:00 a.m. (PST)
Women's 5K - 8:30 a.m. (PST)
FIRST RUN
The Long Beach State men's and women's cross country teams return to action this Saturday (Oct. 17), traveling to the Inland Empire for the Highlander Invitational hosted by UC Riverside. The men's 6,000-meter race is scheduled to start at 8:00 a.m., while the women's 5K will begin at 8:30 a.m. Both races will take place at UCR's Agricultural Operations Course.
IN THE RANKINGS
The 49er men's team comes in at No. 12 in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) West Region Poll. LBSU moved up two spots after being ranked two weeks ago. The 49ers moved ahead of Big West Conference member UC Santa Barbara (13th) and trails Cal Poly (10th) by two spots. Only six Pac-12 teams are ranked ahead of the Beach in this week's west regional poll as Arizona State comes in at No. 14.
LAST YEAR AT THE HIGHLANDER
The LBSU men's team finished in third-place (7 teams) with 66 points with redshirt senior Cameron Pantoja leading the way for the 49ers, placing ninth with a 6K time of 18:19.1. The women's team placed seventh (8 teams) with 166 points and redshirt sophomore Alexandra Lathos crossing the finish line with a 5K time of 18:34.2.
LAST TIME OUT
The 49ers men's team is coming off from a 13th place (23 teams) finish three weeks ago at the Roy Griak Invitational in Falcon Heights, Minn. LBSU collected a total of 386 points to finish in the middle of the pack, with junior Sam Bautista leading the way for the Beach placing 57th (26:07.6). The women's team is coming off from a ninth-place (15 teams) finish at the UC Riverside Invitational back on Sept. 12. The Beach rounded up 255 points as junior Kathleen Dunne was the top runner for the 49ers, placing 17th with a 6K time of 21:30.3.
BEACH OPENS SEASON IN IRVINE
LBSU started off the 2015 campaign at the season opening adidas/UC Irvine Invitational where the men's team finished in second (13 teams) with 35 points and the women placed eighth (15 teams) with 194 points. Redshirt senior Tim Bergstrom led the way for the 49ers, finishing in second with an 8K time of 25:22.45, while junior Kathleen Dunne was the top runner for the women with an 5K mark of 18:28.50.
49ERS WELCOME GILLESPIE AS ASSISTANT COACH
Former University of Arkansas standout Kristen Gillespie enters her first year at the Beach as an assistant coach for the 49ers. A 2013 graduate from Arkansas, Gillespie was a seven-time All-American for the Razorbacks. She was also named the 2012 Southeastern Conference Indoor Runner of the Year and SEC Cross-Country Runner of the Year for 2011.
BIG WEST CHAMPIONSHIPS RETURNS TO RIVERSIDE
For the second consecutive year and ninth overall, the Big West Conference Championships return to UC Riverside's Agricultural Operations Course that is scheduled to take place on Saturday, Oct. 31.
WEST REGIONAL HEADS TO SEATTLE
This year's NCAA West Regional heads to Emerald City and to Jefferson Park Golf Club as the University of Washington will serve as hosts. The NCAA West Regional will be one of nine regionals around the country. Eighteen teams and 36 individuals will advance automatically to the NCAA Championships in Louisville, Ky. Thirteen teams and two individuals will be chosen by an NCAA subcommittee for at-large selections. The top 25 runners in each race receive All-Region recognition.
COMING ATTRACTIONS
The LBSU women's cross country team returns to action on Friday, Oct. 23, taking part in the Titan Invitaitonal hosted by Cal State Fullerton.
Players Mentioned
