Aug. 28, 2007

SAN DIEGO -

San Diego State Cross Country Weekly Release in PDF Format
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SDSU Cross Country Set For Fullerton Season Opener
San Diego State opens 2007 at the Fullerton Season Opener on Saturday, Sept. 1, in a meet hosted by Cal State Fullerton. The 5,000-meter race is set for 8:45 a.m. PT at Carbon Canyon Regional Park in Brea, Calif., with the men's competition scheduled for a 9:15 a.m. start.

The 5K course is predominantly flat and alternates between thick grass, concrete pathways and dirt trails. The Carbon Canyon course has been a good place to run for the Aztecs as they have finished in the top 10 seven out of the last eight years.

The season-opening meet for San Diego State will be the first of two scheduled in Orange County this year. The Aztecs are also set to compete in the Titan Invitational, in Fullerton, Calif., on Friday, Oct. 19, eight days prior to the running of the Mountain West Conference Championships at Mission Bay on Oct. 27.

Success at the Fullerton Season Opener
The Fullerton Season Opener has been a good place to begin the season for San Diego State. In the last eight season-opening outings in Orange County, the Aztecs have finished in the top 10 seven times, including last year where SDSU came in fourth place. Dating back to 1999, the Aztecs have posted three runner-up finishes (2005, 2000, 1999), a pair of sixth-place efforts (2003, 2002) and an eighth-place showing in 2001. The one year where SDSU didn't finish among the top 10 was at the start of the 2004 season where it finished in 15th place.

Taking It Back to 2006: The Fullerton Season Opener
The San Diego State cross country team kicked off 2006 with a fourth-place showing at the 19-team, 5K Fullerton Season Opener at Carbon Canyon Regional Park. The Aztecs recorded 169 points and finished behind Concordia (74 points), LMU (97) and CS Fullerton (128).

Individually, junior Meryl Follosco led the way for the Aztecs as she finished the race in 19:03.00, good for 16th place.

Senior Celeste Tyson was San Diego State's next fastest runner as she clocked in with 24th-place effort of 19:18.40.

A total of seven Aztecs finished within the top 100, including junior Lisa Naucler (58th, 20:02.50) and seniors Jackie Duncan (67th, 20:12.90) and Sara Cates (69th, 20:16.70). True freshmen Stephanie Armstrong (20:38.50), Makenzie Mabry (90th, 20:45.60), Jessica Walker (92nd, 20:47.20) and Jessica Mason (94th, 20:50.00) also finished among the top 100.

Other SDSU runners who crossed the finish line were freshman Lindsay Barajas (111th, 21:02.60), juniors Lital Azulay (153rd, 21:45.50) and Anne Vieira (171st, 22:11.50), freshman Darien Buc (173rd, 22:17.90), sophomore Amanda Maydeck (174th, 22:18.70), and freshmen Michelle Warburton (210th, 25:23.80) and Priscilla Arco (220th, 27:38.00).

2006 Season Review
With nearly 56 percent of San Diego State's cross country team made up of newcomers, including seven freshmen, the Aztecs relied heavily on senior captain Celeste Tyson and she did not disappoint in 2006.

Even with a relatively young squad, SDSU still managed six top-10 finishes in the team's nine meets. Its best finish came at the Fullerton Season Opener, where San Diego State placed fourth of 19 schools. That day the Aztecs were led by junior college transfer Meryl Follosco, who finished with a time of 19 minutes, 3 seconds, en route to earning Mountain West Conference athlete of the week honors.

At the lone home meet of the season, the 62nd Aztec Invitational at Balboa Park, SDSU registered a fifth-place effort, with eight runners establishing season-bests. San Diego State was led by Tyson's 20th-place finish and was the first of six straight races in which she crossed the finish line before any other Aztec.

In Salem, Ore., at the Willamette Invitational, SDSU came in seventh and saw Tyson, Follosco, and freshmen Jessica Mason and Stephanie Armstrong register Aztec career-bests with three others, juniors Lisa Naucler and Lital Azulay and senior Jackie Duncan turning in season-low times. Tyson was San Diego State's top performer completing the race in 17:54.95, good for ninth place.

After claiming the 2005 Santa Clara Invitational title, the Aztecs fell short of making it two in a row when they finished in seventh place. Once again, SDSU was paced by Tyson, who recorded her fourth top-10 finish of her career, with an eighth-place effort of 17:52.00. The Austin, Texas, native's performance was the best 5K of her Aztec career, the fastest time of the season for San Diego State and it earned her MWC athlete of the week accolades.

SDSU carried its momentum from Santa Clara and took it into the MWC Championships in Salt Lake City, Utah, to wrap up its regular season. In the process, four Aztecs set season bests at the 6K meet. Tyson completed the race in 22:57.00, the team's fastest time of the season, with Azulay, Mason and Naucler each turning in season-low marks.