DAVID NAKAGAMI
Staff Writer
For the past two weeks, the men’s and women’s cross country teams have been busy on the road, diligently preparing for the upcoming West Coast Conference Championships this weekend.
On Saturday, Oct. 7, the Waves battled other teams from the area in the UC San Diego Triton Classic. The women turned in an impressive fourth-place finish in the 6K course, backed by a strong performance from junior Courtney Young (19, 24:42.6). Seniors Beth Bedingfield (25:06.8) and Rose Drew (25:07.5) came in one after the other, taking 23rd and 24th place, respectively.
In the men’s 8K race, first-year runner Ryan Hagen turned in a team-best time of 30:58.3. Teammate Drake Woodside was close behind, stopping the stopwatch at 32:15.2. The race results for the men were unofficial.
The following weekend, the teams traveled to San Luis Obispo to participate in the Cal Poly Invitational. The Fairbanks Cross Country Course proved quite a challenge, as Pepperdine’s men finished fifth and the women sixth.
Senior Chris Gaudreau showed his veteran leadership, crossing the line at 27:47.7, good for first on the team and 32nd place overall. The Waves posted another time soon afterward when junior Sam Hudson completed the course in a time of 28:05.4 (38). Sophomore Tim Hatters (45, 28:40.1), sophomore Mike Smith (55, 29:23.3) and freshman Nick Rowan (56, 29.41.1) filled out the rest of the men’s scoring slots.
On the women’s side, senior Kyla Maher broke the tape with a blistering time of 18:40.1, for 16th place out of the field of 141. Several seconds later, sophomore Brieanna Carroll finished the 6K race in 18:54.2, taking 27th. Freshman Caitlin White (35, 19.08.6), Young (38, 19.12.1), and freshman Jessica Heckman (41, 19.14.5) helped the women’s team to a respectable sixth place finish out of 13 teams.
The cross country teams concluded their regular season schedule Friday at the Triton Invitational.
Senior Tarrah Crowley paced the ninth-place Waves with a time of 18:53 (20). Bedingfield (40, 19.27), Drew (49, 19:39), sophomore Courtney Smith (76, 20:38) and junior Lauren Carfioli (77, 20:41) also contributed to the women’s tally.
On the men’s side, Hatters took 37th place, clocking in at 28:05. Rowan ran the course in 28:41 (52), Smith in 29:07 (59), Hagen in 30:37 (75) and junior Josh Stutzman in 33:23 (86). Overall, the men’s team placed seventh with a tally of 197 points.
As Head Coach Robert Radnoti and his athletes said, all previous races up to this point have been preparation for the West Coast Conference Championships and the NCAA Championships. From the beginning of the season, an important aspect of Radnoti’s philosophy has been to become a competitive Division I program. This season’s resume has more than proved this true.
However, one piece of Radnoti’s vision for his cross country teams has yet to be put to the test.
“I want my kids to believe that they are a championship team,” said the first-year coach with conviction.
The Waves look to translate their winning mentality into postseason success when the WCC Championships start Saturday in Belmont, Calif.
10-26-2006