Nov. 7, 2007

SAN DIEGO -

San Diego State Cross Country Weekly Release in PDF Format

SDSU Cross Country Travels to Track Town, USA for NCAA West Regional Championships
The San Diego State cross country team returns to action this weekend when they take part in the NCAA West Regional Championships on Saturday, Nov. 10, in Eugene, Ore. The meet is set for 12:15 p.m. PT at Springfield Country Club.

The regional championships' top two teams along with the top four individual runners from non-qualifying teams will automatically advance to the NCAA Championships, scheduled for Nov. 19 at Indiana State's LaVern Gibson Championship Course in Terre Haute, Ind. On Sunday evening (Nov. 11), an additional 13 at-large teams and two at-large athletes will be added to the field.

SDSU returns to action after not competing last weekend. Saturday will mark the first race for the Aztecs since competing at the Mountain West Conference Championships on Oct. 27 in Albuquerque, N.M.

The Aztecs will bring Stephanie Armstrong, Lindsay Barajas, Darien Buc, Kristin Glen, Makenzie Mabry, Lisa Naucler and Anne Vieira to compete for a spot at the national meet.

The last SDSU athlete to qualify for the NCAA meet was Sophia Hawker, who earned an at-large bid in 1999. Hawker finished 24th of 196 runners at the 5K regional meet that year, which was held in Troutdale, Ore.

San Diego State has only qualified once as a team for the national championships, where it finished seventh in 1981.

Regionals Bring Out Best in Aztecs
As the season moves forward, Aztec runners get stronger and history shows that regionals bring out the best in them. Of the 10 all-time top 6K times in school history, five have occurred at the regional meet and all have happened during the last four years. Two years ago, Lital Azulay registered the second fastest time in program history, while Lisa Crampton (fourth) and Christal Cuadra (sixth) also etched their names in the Aztec record book. The complete top 10 can be found on page two of this release.

On the Verge of Surpassing Tyson
After turning in San Diego State's fastest time in all six `A'-squad meets this season, Lisa Naucler has a shot at surpassing former teammate Celeste Tyson's mark from a year ago. Last season, Tyson ended her collegiate career at SDSU by finishing first among all Aztecs in the final six races of the year. If Naucler turns in the Aztecs' best time, she will surpass her former teammate's achievement in her last season on Montezuma Mesa.

Last Year at the West Regionals
San Diego State finished in 25th place last season at the NCAA West Regionals in a race contested at Blue Lake Park in Fairview, Ore. Celeste Tyson led the way for the Aztecs with a 6K time of 23:06.31.

Tyson was SDSU's top runner for the sixth consecutive race after she finished the course with her second-fastest 6K-time of the season. With her final effort, Tyson ended the season with the three fastest 6K times among all Aztec runners.

Meryl Follosco was the next top SDSU runner as she completed the meet with ninth-fastest time of season at 24:51.47. Lisa Naucler crossed the finish line just after Follosco, clocking in with a time of 24:59.87.

Jackie Duncan finished the race in 25:25.56, just ahead of Jessica Mason, who turned a time of 25:31.71.

Stephanie Armstrong registered a 26:26.82-effort, while Lital Azulay came in at 26:29.45 to round the San Diego State group.

Last Time Out
San Diego State raced at the MWC Championships and finished in ninth place just days after making the last-second trip to Albuquerque, N.M., after wildfires in San Diego County forced the championships to be moved from Mission Bay. The Aztecs earned 229 points in a 6K that took place at the UNM North Golf Course.

For the sixth straight race she has run in, Lisa Naucler posted SDSU's top time by completing the course in 23:35, to finish in 36th place.

Finishing behind Naucler were three sophomores in Stephanie Armstrong (24:24.00), Darien Buc (24:49.00) and Makenzie Mabry (25:00.00). Rounding out SDSU's top five was Kristin Glen, who turned in a time of 25:10.00.

Other Aztecs to compete in the race were Anne Vieira (25:27.00), Lindsay Barajas (25:53.00), Sara Cunningham (27:18.00) and Alyssa Robinson (29:29.00).

Overall, No. 12 Colorado State won the meet and broke 17th-ranked Brigham Young's 19-year conference championship winning streak that dated back to when it was a member of the Western Athletic Conference.