DAVID NAKAGAMI
Staff Writer
The last race for the Pepperdine men’s cross country team was almost three weeks ago, at the West Coast Conference Championships in Belmont, Calif.
The Waves used their preparation and left everything they had on the 8K Crystal Springs Course. Sam Hudson placed a team-high 22nd place, with a time of 26:48. Chris Gaudreau (30, 27:19), Mike Smith (39, 27:44) Tim Hatters (41, 28:11) and Nick Rowan (45, 29:25) rounded out the men’s top five finishers, helping Pepperdine to a sixth-place finish overall with a cumulative score of 177.
“I think most of the men on the team PR’d at many of our meets and they finished strong as a team at the WCC Championships,” Head Coach Robert Radnoti said.
Gaudreau decided to make the most of his senior season as a cross country runner, representing Pepperdine as an individual participant at the NCAA West Regional Championships, hosted by Portland. Gaudreau ran the 8K Blue Lake Park course in a time of 34:17.35, earning a 131st place finish.
“I was very proud of Chris choosing to represent Pepperdine University at the NCAA regional meet,” Radnoti said. “In the past two weeks Chris trained smartly, tapering well for an excellent close of his college cross country career.”
The women, with a strong fifth-place finish at the WCC Championships, continued their season onto the NCAA West Regionals as well. Freshman Caitlin White led the Waves women, breaking the tape at a time of 23:40.23, good for 108th place. Brie Carroll followed at 141st place finish, clocking in at 24:17.46. Beth Bedingfield (25:26.67, 175), Amanda Gordon (25:37.56, 176) and Courtney Young (25:51.89, 182) filled out Pepperdine’s score sheet, posting the Waves at 27th place as a team.
“The Portland meet was important to our team development since next year’s conference championships will be held there for the first time.
“Our young team had a chance to see the course site and mentally prepare for next year,” Radnoti said.
Overall, Radnoti’s first year at the helm of the men’s and women’s cross country squads has been satisfying.
“I am very pleased with the women’s season,” he said. “Nearly everyone on the team improved their performances and learned where our program is headed. This sets us up for a great year of training for next year’s season.”
Radnoti stressed that he learned a lot from this season’s experiences. He hopes the lessons he and the team learned this year will translate into more success next year and further into the future.
“Fans can look forward to a great team and fantastic performances,” Radnoti said. “Look for Pepperdine to move up in the West region cross country rankings over the next year.”
11-16-2006
