FULLERTON, Calif.- The Torero cross-country team kicked off the 2014 season with a strong start at the Mark Covert Classic Saturday morning. Freshman Liam Burke captured first place in his first career race as a Torero to vault the men's team to a fourth place finish.

The women's team opened up their first 5k race running in a tight-knit pack. They finished seventh overall, with the freshmen duo of Julie Giannini and Sam Mattice placing 31st and 32nd with time of 19:36.4. Next were Ashton Padberg (JR) and Stephanie Lapidus (SO), coming in at 19:49.8 and 19:51.0 respectively. Finally rounding out the women's top five weas Sydney Olagaray (JR), who finished with a time of 19:57.7. Overall the women's team's front pack had only 12 places in between the first and fifth runner, which makes for a promising season for these Toreros as a team.

On the men's side, freshman Liam Burke demonstrated a strong second half, finishing in first place in the 8k with a time of 25:56.9. Sophomores Adam Bodine and Spencer Hoffman followed at 26:56.3 and 26:56.4. Finishing off the top five, Ryan Lesansee had a time of 27:07.6, followed by Max Pedrotti at 27:10.6. Altogether, the Men's Team took home fourth place, finishing ahead of their WCC rivals, the Pepperdine Waves.

The 2014 Cross Country Season has officially started and with this first race behind them, the Toreros now set their sights on the new achievements to come this fall. Look for them next at the UC Riverside Invite September 13.