This Saturday, September 26th, the Warriors will stay in Turlock to compete in the annual Stanislaus Invitational Cross-Country Race, sponsored by Adidas. The course is on the CSUS campus, starting by the ancient dirt track and looping around campus several times, with the finish just across Warrior Bridge. It is a flat, fast, and hot course, about 50% grass and 50% road, so good times are in order from all competitors. Men's 8k race starts at 9 am, followed by the women's 6k at 10 am.
The field should be an interesting one, with teams from D2, Naia, D3, and Junior College levels in the mix. Simpson, Cal State Monterey Bay, Las Positas College, Fresno Pacific, Holy Names, UC Merced, and of course Stanislaus will be lacing it up for the men's race, as well as Sonoma and UOP for the women's race.
Looking for her second collegiate victory, and her second of the season, Denali Foldager is the Vegas favorite to win the women's race, though it won't come easily. Foldager won the CSUMB Invite 3 weeks ago, and was the top Division 2 finisher at the Sac. State race two weeks ago.
The Sophomore Stud Selection of Andrea, Rubye, Chelsea, and Lindsay Garcia hope to tear it up on Saturday, moving as a pack to keep the team score low. Freshmen Al-Face Thiele and Liz LaMadrid are both anticipating good races as well. This will be Liz's first race as she has battled injuries thus far into the season. Mary Courtright and Elena Gardner are prepared for big races on Saturday, and are gunning for pr's.
For the men, two questions remain:
1. Winner?
2. Best individual race?
Front-runner Joey Nunes and Kick-master Dawson Vorderbruegge will be duking it out for the win on Saturday. They've been training well together all season, and have split the top spot for the Warriors in the first two races. It will definitely be fun to watch what these two do on Saturday, and to see who crosses the line first. Besides finish place, each is expecting a huge 8k pr, so keep an eye on these two.
As for best individual race, 4 men are vying for this title, hoping to have the breakout race of the season and post a big pr. Palmer Thiele has been having excellent workouts, but has struggled in races this season. Look for him to gun after the top two men and make a name for himself as a young sophomore. Shane Brookshire had a rough summer of training, but is getting back in top shape and looking to use his 5 years of experience as his secret weapon. Ivan Bojorquez is still getting into good shape after only a few weeks of summer running, and has been closing the gap in practice; the rest is up to him on race day. True Freshman Kanwar Dhaliwal has been adjusting to college workouts, but handling the mileage well, this could be his day to make a break to the front of the pack. This is a crucial race for the secondary pack of Warriors, and should prove to be a great test to conclude the first half of the season.
Terrance Ellis has been terribly sick all week, so whether or not he competes will be a game time decision. Also, Tyler Thiele has been dealing with some calf and shin injuries, so his race status is undecided as of now.
Redshirts and Alumni will also be running this weekend. Bret Young, Steve Lenz, Jose Morales, and JD Bhatia will toe the line on Saturday, hoping to help the team to a fast finish, as well as individual pr's. Marina Ghabbour should have an exciting race as she lines up alongside the women, also with Tomara Hall and April Montgomery in the race.
You can find a course map and additional info here:
http://warriorathletics.com/sports/2009/9/9/MXC_0909094236.aspx?path=wcross
See you at the races!
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