March 24, 2018
SAN DIEGO - San Diego traveled across town to San Diego State on Friday to compete in the Aztec Invitational. 14 Toreros recorded personal bests and 15 of them finished in top ten spots in various races.
With such a young team, coach Will Guarino found it important for the freshman to succeed on Friday. Says Guarino, "this is a young team, and they must be nurtured and taught the ways of collegiate racing. It was important for us to compete, and walk away with lessons learned."
In fact, the freshmen women who competed in the 1500m exceled. Hannah Rasmussen was placed in the fastest heat for her collegiate 1500m debut, and placed 12th with a time of 4:40.32. Furthermore, Sera Parvin, Cammy Manes and Kate Kohler placed second, fourth and seventh, respectively, in their heat. Parvin put up a time of 4:51.28 and Kohler, 5:10.57, which were both personal bests for the freshmen.
The young men also brought speed to the Aztec Invite. Jackson Pearce grabbed a second-place spot in the 1500m with a time of 4:01.88. He was closely followed by teammates, Logan Owens in fourth (4:03.47) and Om Kanwar in tenth (4:16.69).
One more Torero came in second place on the day. Junior Zani Moore ran a personal best of 4:44.09 in the 1500m for second place. Guarino showed excitement about several runners coming in second. Says Guarino, "Several second-place finishes and personal bests this early in the season is a good sign for things to come."
Moore was followed by Natalie North-Cole (4:48.78) and Ally Roessling (4:59.13) who came in sixth and 12th, respectively. Both women ran their personal best times for the 1500m race.
The Toreros also brought speed to the 3km races that took place on Friday. Specifically, Max Pedrotti showed a strong performance. Guarino mentions, "Max has been on a training mission, and he wanted to set himself up for a school record performance, and he nearly did." Pedrotti finished sixth with a time of 8:41.89, just missing his personal best mark of 8:41.66.
Other personal best performances for men in the 3km race included Matthew Sickman (9:27.86), Jack McCarthy (9:31.10) and James Davenport (10:28.25).
The women also came to impress in the 3km race on Friday. Competing in the fastest heat, Madison Lambros (10:09.02) placed seventh while recording a personal best time, and Julie Giannini (10:21.18) placed eigth.
The second heat also brought more personal bests for USD. Hailey Shipway (10:.53.58), Hailey Purtzer (11:10.23) and Bri Pertak (11:20.32) all recorded their best times for their running careers.
Coach Guarino is happy with the outcome of Friday's race, stating, "We faced unpredictability today, and we did grow. I am excited for our training week and for the next mile of our spring journey."
Following the Aztec Invite, the Toreros are slated to compete next Saturday at the California Collegiate Invitational, taking place at UC San Diego.
Aztec Invitational results:
Women's 1500m
Section I
Hannah Rasmussen (Fr.) 12. 4:40.32
Section III
Zani Moore (Jr.) 2. 4:44.09 (Personal Best)
Natalie North-Cole (Jr.) 6. 4:48.78 (Personal Best)
Ally Roessling (So.) 12. 4:59.13 (Personal Best)
Section IV
Sera Parvin (Fr.) 2. 4:51.28 (Personal Best)
Cammy Manes (Fr.) 4. 4:58.06
Kate Kohler (Fr.) 7. 5:01.57 (Personal Best)
Erin Duncan (So.) 10. 5:11.05 (Personal Best)
Men's 1500m
Section III
Jackson Pearce (Fr.) 2. 4:01.88
Logan Owens (Sr.) 4. 4:03.47
Om Kanwar (Jr.) 10. 4:16.69
Women's 3km
Section I
Madison Lambros (RS Fr.) 7. 10:09.02 (Personal Best)
Julie Giannini (Sr.) 8. 10:21.18
Maggie Scholle (Fr.) 11. 10:34.21
Sam Mattice (Sr.) 12. 10:37.73
Section II
Hailey Shipway (Sr.) 5. 10:53.58 (Personal Best)
Shannan Conlon (Sr.) 9. 11:03.11
Alison Mattias (Fr.) 10. 11:06.86
Hailey Purtzer (So.) 11. 11:10.23 (Personal Best)
Bri Pertak (So.) 12. 11:20.32 (Personal Best)
Men's 3km
Max Pedrotti (Sr.) 6. 8:41.89
Patrick Bruce (So.) 11. 8:59.45 (Personal Best)
Liam Burke (Sr.) 14. 9:12.10
Matthew Sickman (So.) 15. 9:27.86 (Personal Best)
Jack McCarthy (Fr.) 16. 9:31.10 (Personal Best)
Isaiah Quiambao (Jr.) 17. 9:32.31
Ryan Tessier (Fr.) 18. 9:53.59
James Davenport (Jr.) 19. 10:28.25 (Personal Best)
