Chico State Edges UC Davis To Claim CCAA Cross Country Titles

Laurie and Cherdack place fourth to lead Aggie teams; Wildcats end UC Davis' four-year title runs

 
 

 
Steve Laurie led six Aggies in the top-15 at the CCAA Championships.
  

Oct. 26, 2002

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - Chico State claimed four of the top six places in the men's race and then edged UC Davis for the top spot in the women's standings, as the Wildcats upset the Aggies on Saturday to win both titles at the 2002 California Collegiate Athletic Association Cross Country Championships, hosted by Cal St. Bakersfield.

Eighth-ranked Chico State scored 28 points to win the men's competition, edging No.5 UC Davis was second with 39 and Cal Poly Pomona finished third with 89. In the women's race, the 11th-ranked Wildcats tallied 42 points, placing just ahead of No.9 UC Davis, which was second with 55. Cal St. Stanislaus was third with 91 points.

Both Aggie teams entered the meeting having claimed the four previous CCAA titles since entering the conference in 1998.

For UC Davis, Steve Laurie led the Aggie men with a strong fourth-place finish on Saturday, while Laura Cherdack was an impressive fourth for the women.

"We knew it was going to be an awfully competitive conference this year, which it was in both races," said UC Davis Coach Sue Williams. "We knew it was going to be a real head-to-head battle with Chico for both the men and the women. We knew it would be a tossup."

Chico State capitalized on a strong showing up front to dethrone the Aggie men. Chris Eggers covered the 8,000-meter race in 24 min., 56.77 seconds to pace the Wildcats, while teammate Matt Faulkner was close behind him in third in 24:58.08. Juan Sanchez and Patrick Boivin followed Laurie in fifth- and sixth-places, respectively, helping Chico State post the win.

Mark Batres of Cal Poly won the individual title, winning in 24:52.31.

UC Davis placed six Aggies on the All-CCAA team by virtue of their top-15 finishes. Besides Laurie, who finished in 25:02.18, the Aggies also had top showings from Steven Fairclough in seventh (25:17.05), Jak Kuehn in eighth (25:21.23), Alex Daniels (25:21.66) in ninth, Nate Bristow in 11th (25:33.93) and Matt Laye in 14th (25:40.53).

Chico State only had three runners in the top 10 but placed six athletes in the top 15 overall to help with the Wildcats' upset win on the women's side. Margaret Pridgen was third overall in the 6,000-meter in 21:44.90, while Katie Lee was sixth (21:50.44) and Sarah Hallas awas 10th (22:00.06).

Cherdack and Sopagna Eap had top-10 finishes for the Aggie women, two of four UC Davis runners who earned All-CCAA honors. Cherdack (21:47.09) and Eap (21:48.22) were fourth and fifth, respectively, while Jessica Neu placed 14th (22:07) and senior Ann Glenn was 15th (22:07.87).

In addition to top showings by Laurie and Eap, Williams particulary noted the performances of Fairclough and Cherdack. Both Aggie squads had 32-second gaps between their scoring runners.

Annmarie Housen of Cal St. L.A. won the women's individual title in 20:52.10.

Housen joined men's winner Batres as 2002 CCAA Runners of the Year, while Chico State coach Gary Towne was named the CCAA Coach of the Year for both the men and the women.

UC Davis will next prepare for the NCAA Division II West Region Championships, which will be conducted in Fresno on Nov. 9.

CCAA CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
Hosted by Cal St. Bakersfield

Men's 8K Results
TEAM RESULTS - 1. Chico State 28; 2. UC DAVIS 39; 3. Cal Poly Pomona 89; 4. UC San Diego 91; 5. Cal State Stanislaus 149; 6. San Francisco State 170.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (Top 15) - 1. Mark Batres, Pomona, 24:52.31; 2. Chris Eggers, Chico, 24:56.77; 3. Matt Faulkner, Chico, 24:58.08; 4. STEVE LAURIE, UC Davis, 25:02.18; 5. Juan Sanchez, Chico, 25:06.66; 6. Patrick Boivin, Chico, 25:10.59; 7. STEVE FAIRCLOUGH, UC Davis, 25:17.05; 8. JAK KUEHN, UC Davis, 25:21.23; 9. ALEX DANIELS, UC Davis, 25:21.66; 10. Neil Kalra, UC San Diego, 25:30.39; 11. NATE BRISTOW, UC Davis, 25:33.93; 12. Vernon Ruiz, Chico, 25:37.40; 13. Steven Springhorn, Chico, 25:39.90; 14. MATT LAYE, UC Davis, 25:40.53; 15. Matt Rainwater, Pomona, 25:46.74.

Women's 6K Results
TEAM RESULTS:1. Chico State 42; 2. UC DAVIS 55; 3 CS Stanislaus 91; 4. UC San Diego 106; 5. San Francisco State 178; 6. Cal Poly Pomona 179; 7. Sonoma State 181; 8. CS, San Bernardino 198; 9. Cal State L.A. 241; 10. CS Bakersfield 295; 10. CS Dominguez Hills 295.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (Top 15) - 1. Annmarie Housen, CSULA, 20:52.10; 2. Audrey Sung, UCSD, 21:21.27; 3. Margaret Pridgen, Chico, 21:44.90; 4. LAURA CHERDACK, UC Davis, 21:47.09; 5. SOPAGNA EAP, UC Davis, 21:48.22; 6. Katie Lee, Chico, 21:50.44; 7. Shannon O'Connor, SF State, 21:55.16; 8. Wendy Fortino, Stanislaus, 21:58.15; 9. Tanya Zeferjahn, CSUSB, 21:59.01; 10. Sarah Hallas, Chico, 22:00.06; 11. Lyndsey Kuehn, Chico, 22:00.40; 12. Jasmine Green, Chico, 22:00.83; 13. Missy Lend, Chico,22:01.40; 14. JESSICA NEU, UC Davis, 22:07. 12; 15. ANN GLENN, UC Davis, 22:07.87.