This past weekend proved to be a huge one for the UCSB cross country team as the men’s team captured the Big West title while the women placed third in the Big West Cross Country Championships this Saturday.
The first four of five finishers in the men’s 8k were Gauchos. Junior Bryan Guijarro took first place with a time of 23:47, junior Anthony Ortolan finished just one second behind Guijarro with a time of 23:48. Senior Bryce Rausa took fourth place for UCSB with a time of 24:08 and junior Shyan Vaziri took fifth place with a time of 24:12.
Rausa and ninth-place finisher sophomore Anthony Monroy each put up personal records in the men’s 8k. The men’s team dominated the majority of the field, beating out last years’ reigning champs, rival Cal Poly. The men’s average 8k pace (24:04) was an impressive 22 seconds over second place Cal Poly (24:26).
The women excelled in the tournament too, taking third place in the field of nine competing universities. The Gauchos were led by senior Dani Moreno who finished with a time of 20:45 in the women’s 6k. The women had three finishers in the top 20, greatly contributing to their finish over fourth-place UC Riverside.
The Gauchos next look to travel to Palo Alto where they will compete in the NCAA West Region Championships on Friday Nov. 14.