Saturday, October 27
Brea, Calif.
8:00 a.m.
California State University at Northridge
vs
Big West Conference Championship
Photo by: John Fajardo
Merchan Gets Top-Five Finish; CSUN Men 7th, Women 8th at Big West Championship
10/27/2018 5:19:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country
BREA, Calif - The CSUN men's cross country team, paced by Michael Merchan, finished seventh in the 8k race while the CSUN women were eighth overall paced by freshman Heidi Eligio in the 5k race Saturday at the Big West Championships hosted by Cal State Fullerton.
Merchan capped off an incredible campaign with the best ever finish for a male CSUN runner at the Big West Championships, finishing fourth overall. His second consecutive top-5 finish over two weeks had a time of 24:41.4 out of 67 runners at Carbon Canyon Regional Park. This comes off a performance where Merchan finished third overall out of 250 runners and paced the Big West field at The Highlander Invitational. That showing led him to his second Big West Runner of the Week award this season, as he is the only Matador male runner to win the award once in a season, let alone twice.
Following Merchan's lead for the men's team was Mario Ramirez (29th, 25:53.6), David Hidalgo (36th, 26:04.9), Kristian Oatman (56th, 26:54.9), Daniel Fendrich (57th, 26:58.0), Robby Foster (61st, 27:19.1), Oscar Ochoa (63rd, 27:24.2), Julian Silva (64th, 27:37.8) and Brandon Sanchez (67th, 28:36.4). The CSUN men's team was able to secure seventh overall.
On the women's side, Heidi Eligio paced the team for the second consecutive race and second time in her early career as a Matador. The sophomore from Burbank finished 31st overall with a time of 23:10.9 just two weeks after pacing the team with a 52nd overall finish out of 251 runners at The Highlander Invitational.
"We've improved so much this season not only as individuals, but as a team." Eligio said. "I was motivated to become the best runner I could be to help lead my teammates throughout the season."
"The future is bright for Heidi," said head coach Lawrence Johnson. "She is extremely talented and competitive and she has established herself as someone we can count on to lead us into the future."
Other notable performances for the women's side include Katie Alvarenga (48th, 23:47.8), Joy Bosede (58th, 24:10.8), Marina Kaye (65th 24:31.0), Alyssa Segovia (67th, 24:47.0), Danielle Rodriguez (72nd, 25:19.1), Elizabeth Silengo (74th, 25:46.1) and Serena Garcia (77th, 26:22.3). Coach Johnson shared his thoughts on the competition, and the overall year itself. "The seasonal theme that we talked about daily was 'Meeting the Challenge'." Johnson said. "We were able to accomplish that goal at times, but not consistently enough to break into the top three teams in the league this season. We have very young teams and every outing was an opportunity to grow. I think we grew quite a bit this season."
The coaching staff reflected on the 2018 season, and what they remembered most. "I will remember the desire and effort of these students athletes to get better everyday," said Johnson. "They worked extremely hard during practice sessions and were committed to excellence."
2019 is already on the minds of these student-athletes.
"Eligio, Hidalgo, Oatman, and Bosede have the talent to take us into the future," said Johnson. "However, future success is also going to come in the form of firming up on our overall team depth and recruiting."
~GoMatadors.com~
Merchan capped off an incredible campaign with the best ever finish for a male CSUN runner at the Big West Championships, finishing fourth overall. His second consecutive top-5 finish over two weeks had a time of 24:41.4 out of 67 runners at Carbon Canyon Regional Park. This comes off a performance where Merchan finished third overall out of 250 runners and paced the Big West field at The Highlander Invitational. That showing led him to his second Big West Runner of the Week award this season, as he is the only Matador male runner to win the award once in a season, let alone twice.
Following Merchan's lead for the men's team was Mario Ramirez (29th, 25:53.6), David Hidalgo (36th, 26:04.9), Kristian Oatman (56th, 26:54.9), Daniel Fendrich (57th, 26:58.0), Robby Foster (61st, 27:19.1), Oscar Ochoa (63rd, 27:24.2), Julian Silva (64th, 27:37.8) and Brandon Sanchez (67th, 28:36.4). The CSUN men's team was able to secure seventh overall.
On the women's side, Heidi Eligio paced the team for the second consecutive race and second time in her early career as a Matador. The sophomore from Burbank finished 31st overall with a time of 23:10.9 just two weeks after pacing the team with a 52nd overall finish out of 251 runners at The Highlander Invitational.
"We've improved so much this season not only as individuals, but as a team." Eligio said. "I was motivated to become the best runner I could be to help lead my teammates throughout the season."
"The future is bright for Heidi," said head coach Lawrence Johnson. "She is extremely talented and competitive and she has established herself as someone we can count on to lead us into the future."
Other notable performances for the women's side include Katie Alvarenga (48th, 23:47.8), Joy Bosede (58th, 24:10.8), Marina Kaye (65th 24:31.0), Alyssa Segovia (67th, 24:47.0), Danielle Rodriguez (72nd, 25:19.1), Elizabeth Silengo (74th, 25:46.1) and Serena Garcia (77th, 26:22.3). Coach Johnson shared his thoughts on the competition, and the overall year itself. "The seasonal theme that we talked about daily was 'Meeting the Challenge'." Johnson said. "We were able to accomplish that goal at times, but not consistently enough to break into the top three teams in the league this season. We have very young teams and every outing was an opportunity to grow. I think we grew quite a bit this season."
The coaching staff reflected on the 2018 season, and what they remembered most. "I will remember the desire and effort of these students athletes to get better everyday," said Johnson. "They worked extremely hard during practice sessions and were committed to excellence."
2019 is already on the minds of these student-athletes.
"Eligio, Hidalgo, Oatman, and Bosede have the talent to take us into the future," said Johnson. "However, future success is also going to come in the form of firming up on our overall team depth and recruiting."
~GoMatadors.com~
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
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