Box Score: Cross country at Standford

Even though the Sacramento State cross country team did not place in the top-ten this past weekend, a conversation with head coach, Joe Neff, would suggest otherwise. Neff is extremely proud and impressed with the way his athletes have trained for this season.

“I’m pleased with the dedication of the team and I want to thank them for all of their efforts,” Neff said.

On Saturday, the men’s and women’s cross country teams competed in the Stanford Invitational.

Sophomore Sara Bei of Stanford won the women’s race with a time of 20:02. The Hornet women were lead by fifth-year senior, Melissa Madeson, who finished in 33rd place, with a time of 22 minutes16 seconds.

“I really liked this race because the competition was really hard and the distance was more challenging,” Madeson said. “We had to hurdle racers at the start of the race because there were so many athletes trying to make their way to the front.”

Thirty-three collegiate teams raced on the hilly, six-kilometer course and the Hornet women finished 23rd overall.

Some of the top schools in the country were at Saturday’s invitational race including Stanford, Duke, Wisconsin, and UCLA.

Sophomore Cameron Clarke of the University of New Mexico won the men’s race with an overall time of 23:51 on a challenging, eight-kilometer course. Junior Ben Morales lead the way for Hornet men with a time of 25:22, placing him in 56th, and the team in 21st overall.

The men and women’s performances suffered in Saturday’s races due to on-going injuries. Senior Cuco Chavez was kept out of the competition for the second week in a row as a result of a recurring problem with his achilles tendon.

For the women, junior Molly Peterson and sophomore Angela Mercado were also sidelined with injuries. Fortunately, both teams will have a bye this upcoming week and will use the time to recover and rebuild.

The team will travel to compete in the Triton Invitational in San Diego on the weekend of Oct. 12.

“We are entering the crucial part of our season, so I hope to have everyone healthy by the Big Sky Championship on the 26th of October,” Neff said.