Cross Country Closes Out Season

By Nick Marshall

Eight men and nine women from Santa Clara's cross country team were in Davis this weekend to participate in the final non-championship event of the season, the Doc Adams Invitational.

The women finished in 6th place overall in a field of seven teams, while the men finished in 4th place out of five different schools. Out of 62 total runners, the men had four members in the top 40, while the women placed four members out of 81 total runners in the top 45.

Out ahead for the Bronco men were seniors Richard Zhu and Chris Sampson, who posted 21st and 31st place finishes, respectively. Zhu ran for an 8k personal best time of 25:11, with Sampson crossing the finish line shortly after in a season-best time of 25:38.  

Head coach Felipe Montoro, in his seventh year with the Broncos, was particularly encouraged by Zhu's performance in his last 8k run of his career.

"(He) was our alternate last week and didn't get to compete," said Montoro. "He really ran phenomenally (at Davis). He had never broken 26 minutes before and here he was at 25:11. This was kind of a breakout cross country race for him so it was great to finally get it in his last opportunity to run an 8k."

Rounding out the top four finishers for the men were freshman Tony Ferrari (33rd) with a time of 25:52, and senior Nhunguyen Le (36th) coming in quick succession at 25:57 for another Bronco personal best.

Freshman Kelly Ryan led the way for the women coming in 24th place, completing the 6k course in 22:03, well under a minute of her previous personal best. Thirty seconds later, fellow freshman Alex Garcia crossed the line for a 34th place finish (22:33). Close behind were sophomore Kayla Germany (22:44) and freshman Audrey Hiatt (22:57) for 42nd and 44th place finishes, respectively.

Montoro was pleased with his team's individual performances this weekend, emphasizing that the focus was not on the overall team score.

"Individually we did really well," said Montoro. "They all ran really well, and I'd have to look it over, but I think for the most part everybody ran a personal best."

Next up on the agenda for Santa Clara is the National Collegiate Athletic Association West Regional Championships on Nov. 12 in Palo Alto. The men will be running a 10k and the women will be running a 6k around the Stanford Golf Course.  

In the men's field of 27 schools, powerhouses from the Pacific 12, West Coast conference, Big West and other conferences will join Santa Clara in a highly competitive field in Palo Alto. The women's draw looks relatively similar with an equally competitive field of 34.

Unfortunately for the women, they will be potentially running without their top two performers, junior Mary Reynolds and senior Erin McCarthy, due to injury and illness. Thus, the Regional Championships for the women will be more about getting experience for their young talent and looking for individual improvements from over the course of the season.

The men are particularly excited about Regionals this year with their top two runners, senior Robbie Reid and sophomore Ben Demaree, looking to make an impact. Coach Montoro expressed that Reid and Demaree will be critical to the Broncos' success in such a deep and competitive event.

"To do really well in a meet like this, it's really important to have front-runners that can get a low score," he said. "With Robbie (Reid) and Ben (Demaree) we have that this year, and that's something we haven't necessarily had in years past, so that's exciting."

Contact Ryan Marshall at rmarshall@scu.edu or (408) 554-4852.