SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – This Saturday at the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Cross Country Championships, the Chico State men have an opportunity to do something no other CCAA men’s program has done before – win its seventh straight CCAA title in a sport currently sponsored by the conference.
The Wildcats have won six straight and never finished lower than second in their 10 CCAA Championship races since they joined the conference in 1998. Only the 1958 Fresno State track & field team and the 1960 Fresno State golf team had won six straight titles before the Wildcats matched that feat last season by placing six runners inside the top seven at the CCAA Championships.
Chico State’s women’s cross country team has been almost as dominant as the men, winning four of the last six conference titles and finishing among the top two teams in nine of the last 10 years.
Both Chico State teams are currently ranked No. 4 in the nation and No. 1 in the West Region and favored to add another CCAA Championship trophy to their respective cases.
Cal State San Bernardino will host the 2008 championships on Saturday at Glen Helen Regional Park in nearby Devore. The women’s six-kilometer race is set for 9 a.m. and the men’s 8-kilometer race will go off at 9:45 a.m.
The meet brings together 11 women’s teams and seven men’s teams to compete for the CCAA championship. The top 15 finishers in each race will earn all-CCAA honors. Coach of the Year, Freshman of the Year, and Newcomer of the Year honors will also be announced after the meet.
Following is a brief preview of the races:
Women’s CCAA Cross Country Championship Preview
On the women’s side, three of the 11 teams are ranked among the Top 25 in the nation in NCAA Division II. Chico State is No. 4, defending conference champion Cal State L.A. No. 15, and UC San Diego is No. 21. Chico State also is No. 1 in the West Region followed by Cal State L.A. (No. 2), UC San Diego (No. 5), Cal Poly Pomona (No. 9) and San Francisco State (No. 10).
Despite having graduated 4 of their top 5 women from the ’07 CCAA meet, the Wildcats enter the weekend as favorites to claim their 5th CCAA title in 7 years. Defending Champion Cal State L.A. should provide the stiffest test for the Wildcats, though UC San Diego is also a threat to win.
Junior Tori Tyler has been the team’s top runner thus far this season and is one of the favorites to bring home the individual title. She’s been the first Chico State runner to cross the line in two of her three races to date and appears to be peaking at the right time. The transfer from the University of Washington clocked an impressive 17:57 in Willamette a few weeks ago.
Alia Gray, Shannon McVannel, and Kara Lubieniecki, have seemingly been running with a rope tied around them. An 11-second spread between the trios first and third finisher in a crowded Stanford field was reduced to only three seconds at Oregon. If that trend continues, the Wildcats will be very tough to beat. Senior Kayla Silva has been climbing back into the picture as the season has progressed, finishing workouts with the team’s top group. Look for Silva to challenge for a top placing this weekend as well.
List of competing Chico State women:
Tori Tyler
Alia Gray
Shannon McVannel
Katie Spencer
Stephanie Consiglio
Shannon Rich
Colleen Joyce
Jessica Nelson
Kayla Silva
Kara Lubieniecki
Top Contenders for the Individual Title
Vivien Wadeck, Cal State L.A.- Wadeck appears to be the individual favorite for the title this year. The Glendale College transfer who placed third at last year’s junior college state championships has had a huge impact on the Golden Eagles’ program since her arrival. She recently finished secondnd at the Division II Pre-National meet and has enjoyed Top-10 finishes in each meet this season.
Anna Bretan, San Francisco State - Bretan has raced sparingly this fall but that shouldn’t take away from her expectations to vie for the title on Saturday. She boasts a 5k personal record of 16:56, which earned her a third place finish in the NCAA meet last Spring. She should challenge Wadeck for the individual honors.
Bre Schofield, UC San Diego – Schofield, a true freshman, has picked up where she left off last track season when she posted a 4:31 personal record 1,500-meters on the track. She scorched the Aztec Invitational field earlier this season, finishing 40 seconds ahead of Chico’s first finisher, but her recent results have been a bit more modest. Still, Schofield should be in the hunt at the end of the day.
Tiffany Turner, Cal Poly Pomona – Turner, who finished 20th in the CCAA Championship last season, has been one of the conference’s most improved runners in 2008. She has been running extremely well and recently defeated Schofield handily at UC San Diego’s Triton Invitational.
Tori Tyler, Chico State - Tyler has enjoyed a solid season, but definitely has more in the tank. As a freshman at the University of Washington she earned All-Pac 10 and All-West Region honors before injuries marred her sophomore season. She’s currently rounding back into form and has improved with each outing this year. If that trend continues, she could contend for the title.
Men’s CCAA Cross Country Championship Preview
The top-ranked team on the men's side is Chico State, which is ranked No. 4 in the nation. UC San Diego enters the conference championships No. 18. The Wildcats are ranked No. 1 in the West Region and followed by UC San Diego (No. 4), Cal Poly Pomona (No. 6) and Humboldt State (No. 7).
The Chico State men’s team features a host of talented CCAA veterans who make the Wildcats heavy favorites to add a seventh straight title to their collection. The biggest threat should come in the form of UC San Diego. The Tritons’ top two runners, Jake Levieux and Jesse Morrill, along with Cal Poly Pomona’s Jersain Torres, will in all likelihood be the only runners standing in the way of a perfect team score for the Wildcats.
List of competing Chico State men:
Scott Bauhs
Brendan Scanlon
Beau Rogers
Alan Campos
Tim Cannon
Angel Marquez
Jordan Fairley
Manny Mejia
Thomas Whitcomb
Clinton Hayes
Top Contenders for the Individual Title
Scott Bauhs, Chico State - Bauhs is clearly the class of the field at this year’s CCAA championship and should win his first title Saturday. Bauhs redshirted during the 2007 cross country campaign. In 2006, Bauhs elected not to run in the CCAA race to allow the team’s 11th runner – a senior - to compete. Teammate Charlie Serrano would claim the title that year. The year before Bauhs enjoyed watching current Chico State assistant coach Pat Boivin win the title during his senior season. Now it’s Bauhs’ turn to bring home the individual title, which would be the program’s fifth in the last eight years.
Brendan Scanlon, Chico State - Scanlon was only 11th in the 2007 version of this race, but would go on to place in the top 10 in the regional, then 20th at NCAA Championships. The redshirt sophomore is widely considered the favorite to claim the runner-up spot to Bauhs.
Jersain Torres, Cal Poly Pomona – Torres, a transfer from Santa Anna Community College, has quickly established himself as one of the premier distance talents in the CCAA. He’s finished among the top 10 in several large fields already this season, including the recent Regional Preview where he finished sixth. Torres finished 27th at the Stanford Invitational, just one second in front of Chico’s number three runners, Angel Marquez. Torres also won the CCAA Preview in September.
Jesse Morrill, UC San Diego – Morrill, a 9:13 3,200-meter runner as a prep at Marina High School, finished among the top 15 in the region during his true freshman season. Injuries have hampered his progress since, but he’s back and running quite well this season. His recent 7th place finish at the Regional Preview shows good fitness and potential for a top placing on Saturday.
