SAN FRANCISCO – Stanford’s top-five ranked cross country teams opened the season at the USF Invitational in low-key fashion, earning the women’s team victory and finishing second among the men.
The Cardinal took a measured approach to the meet, which began and ended at Speedway Meadow in Golden Gate Park, concentrating on team running and achieving certain splits, rather than going all-out. In addition, many of the Cardinal’s top runners rested.
The results reflected Stanford’s approach. The Cardinal’s top five women finished as a pack, in third through seventh, to score 25 points to runner-up Cal’s 52. Vanessa Fraser was the top Cardinal finisher, running 18:02.4 over the 5K course (3.1 miles). The Stanford women are No. 4 in the USTFCCCA coaches’ rankings.
The top five Stanford men finished together, in fourth through eighth, scoring 30 points to first-place Cal’s 25. The Golden Bears took the first three places, with Garrett Sweatt heading the Stanford pack in fourth, running 25:26.4 over the 8K course (4.97 miles). The Cardinal men are ranked No. 5.
The meet signaled the collegiate cross country debuts for several sophomores who redshirted as freshmen -- Fraser and Emma Fisher for the women; and Jack Keelan, Sam Wharton, Tom Coyle and Patrick Gibson for the men. Keelan and Wharton were second and third at the U.S. junior national championships earlier this year. No true freshmen competed for Stanford on Saturday.
The team reported Thursday, raced Saturday, and leaves Sunday for a high-altitude training camp at Mammoth Lakes, Calif. (elevation 7,880 feet), on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada range, through Sept. 19. The fall quarter begins Sept. 22.
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Winners and Stanford results:
Women (5K, 3.11 miles)
Team scores – 1, Stanford 25; 2, California 52; 3, San Francisco 62; 4, Santa Clara 125; 5, San Jose State 134; 6, Cal State Northridge 159; 7, UC Santa Cruz 193; 8, Cumberlands 205; 9, Pacific 216; 10, San Joaquin Delta 271.
Individual results – 1, Elizabeth Nelson (CS Northridge) 17:54.1. Stanford: 3, Vanessa Fraser 18:02.4; 4, Sophie Chase 18:02.4; 5, Molly McNamara 18:02.4; 6, Emma Fisher 18:02.5; 7, Rebecca Mehra 18:02.8; 32, Cami Chapus 19:35.8.
Men (8K, 4.97 miles)
Team scores – 1, California 25; 2, Stanford 30; 3, San Jose State 106; 4, Santa Clara 110; 5, San Francisco 127; 6, American River 157; 7, Cal State Northridge 196; 8, UC Santa Cruz 221; 9, San Joaquin Delta 278.
Individual results – 1, Yohaness Estifanos (Cal) 25:07.3. Stanford: 4, Garrett Sweatt 25:26.4; 5, Michael Atchoo 25:26.4; 6, Jack Keelan 25:26.4; 7, Sam Wharton 26:26.5; 8, Joe Rosa 25:26.7. 19, Adam Thorne 26:08.2; 25, Marco Bertolotti 26:18.6; 26, Tom Coyle 26:18.8; 28, Patrick Gibson 26:22.4.
Link to complete results: Click here