Men's XC Kicks Off Season With Record Finish in 8-K

Sami Cleland

Anders Crabo PO '12 practices for the UC Riverside Invitational after helping the Sagehens to the fastest opening meet in team history on Sept. 3.

Sports

By Colin Flynn

Published 8 months ago

Captain Paul Balmer called the play on the go, and his Sagecocks executed without hesitation at CSU Fullerton's "Season Opener" at Carbon Canyon Park on Sept. 3.  Five Pomona-Pitzer cross-country runners finished within 23 seconds of each other in their first eight-kilometer effort of the season. Alex Johnson PZ '13 lead the pack, finishing in 26 minutes and ten seconds, and earning a 17th place finish.

Colin Flynn PZ '12, Anders Crabo PO '12, Benjamin Giordias PO '15, and Balmer rounded out P-P's scoring squad with times of 26:13, 26:26, 26:31, and 26:33 respectively, making it the fastest opener for the Hen Men in recent history.

Although not unexpected, such a strong start came as a pleasant surprise for the athletes and their coach, Tony Boston. The graduation of four seniors—including NCAA qualifer Charles Enscoe—coupled with the four-month competitive hiatus taken by many juniors who participated in study abroad programs made the depth of the team difficult to predict before Saturday morning.

But the cool weather and relatively flat course proved agreeable enough for the 'Cocks, who, after months of training alone, finally got an opportunity to gauge their individual fitness levels and compete once again with their teammates .  

For the captains, the meet also provided an opportunity to hone their leadership skills.

"Given the course's lake and grassy terrain, 'Badcock 23' was clearly the best strategy today", said Balmer, in reference to his choice of play at the race's outset. "I made a good call and the team responded. Senior year: doing it."

When a still-delirious Benjamin "Rodeo" Giordias PO '15 reflected on the first 8k of his collegiate career, he also noted the team dynamic.

 "We've been drawing up and practicing various plays all week, so I was a little unsure of what to expect, but we pulled it off, and it felt good," he said.

Fellow SCIAC schools La Verne and Whittier were also at the meet, however the Leopards ran only a small portion of their roster while the Poets appeared lackadaisical and unfocused. 

That could change tomorrow, however, when La Verne, Whittier, and several other SCIAC programs face the Hen Men once again at the highly-competitive UC Riverside Invitational. The dirt-packed course—as well as the presence of many Division 1 programs—is likely to produce what will be, for many runners, the fastest times yet this season.