by Araceli Esparza
Editor in Chief
Pacing itself through a day of improvements, the University of La Verne’s cross country team battled warm weather to cross the finish line and set personal records (PR) at the Riverside Cross Country Invitational on Saturday.
“It was very challenging, in the way that there was this dirt course in the middle of the [Moreno] Valley,” said sophomore Trisha Garcia. “There was the hot sun beating down on us and no breeze whatsoever.”
Despite the estimated 90-degree temperatures endured by the Leopards, head coach Pat Widolff said he was satisfied with his team’s performance. The women finished in the top 70 percent of all squads (placing 14th overall) for their three-mile race, and the men placed 17th in the five-mile competition.
“Our guys, teamwise, didn’t do too well, but I’m still happy with them,” Widolff said. “These first meets, we get used to running at the college level. The goal is to get them used to the distance, see their strengths and weaknesses and work on those weaknesses.”
Among the feats from Saturday’s race was Garcia’s 25:11 finish, a new PR for the second-year ULV runner.
“Trisha Garcia did really well; she’s really improving the most,” Widolff said. “She’s not our No. 1 runner, but she has shown improvement.”
Top competitors for the women’s team were junior Leti Arroyo and freshman Stephanie Pedroza, who have clocked in under the 21-minute mark for the last two meets. Arroyo crossed the finish line in 35th place with a time of 20:46, and Pedroza followed closely behind with a 20:57 finish to place 45th.
Rounding out the women’s team were freshman Erika Schatz and senior Maxine Mitchell, who came in at 23:28 and 23:38 for a 137th- and 144-place finish, respectively. Also contributing to the team’s efforts were sophomore Quency Long (24:30), senior Lyn Merrill (25:13) and junior Mary Terry (30:39).
The team’s efforts, altogether, helped move it in to the fourth place spot among the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) schools that also participated in the Riverside event.
For the men’s team, top runners included freshmen Ryan Scott-Acosta, who finished 77th overall with a time of 24:19, and Brandon Becerra, who came at 26:51 for a 137th-place finish.
Also clocking in for the Leopards were junior Faust Obeso (27:03), freshman Calvin Becerra (27:50), junior Kyle Young (27:52), freshman Darun Ang (28:56) and freshman Matt Pegram (29:31). Junior Dan Kiminki and sophomore Aaron Garcia completed the men’s team, finishing at 29:41 and 32:20, respectively.
The men’s squad finished in fifth-place among the SCIAC schools that competed in Saturday’s invitational.
“I think we did awesome,” Trisha Garcia said, adding that La Verne demonstrated a lot of teamwork at the Riverside meet. “This year we’re bigger and we’re better.”
“It’s the most talented team we’ve had here,” said Widolff. “They seem like they train hard, and they have talent and potential.”
