LA JOLLA, Calif. ? The UC San Diego men's and women's cross country teams will compete on their home course for the third time this season when they take part in the 2008 NCAA Division II West Regional Championships this Saturday at the Triton Cross Country Course. The 10k men's race will begin at 8:45 a.m. and the 6k women's event is scheduled to follow at 10:15. Both races will start on the North Campus Athletic Fields and finish on the Triton Track.
Saturday's West Regional will feature an extremely competitive field that includes four men's teams and six women's squads currently ranked in the USTFCCCA Top 25. In addition to No. 19 UCSD, fourth-ranked and CCAA Champion Chico State, No. 6 Alaksa Anchorage, and No. 11 Western Washington highlight the men's field. The Triton women enter Saturday's race with a No. 20 national ranking and will go up against the likes of third-ranked Chico State (also the CCAA champ), No. 10 Cal State L.A., No. 11 Seattle Pacific, No. 14 Alaska Anchorage, and 25th-ranked Western Washington.
The top three men's teams and the top five squads on the women's squad will advance to the NCAA Division II Cross Country National Championships on November 22 in Slippery Rock, Pa.
Currently ranked fourth in the region, UCSD's men enter Saturday's competition on the heels of a second place finish at the CCAA Championships in San Bernardino on October 25. Senior Jake LeVieux led the way for the Tritons, finishing ninth overall with a time of 26:08.8. He crossed the line 22 seconds in front of teammate Max Mullender, who was the next finisher for UCSD, placing 13th overall. Jeremy Riley, Gabe LaMothe, and Mike Wright rounded out the scoring for the Tritons, finishing in 17th, 20th, and 21st places, respectively.
LeVieux and Mullender took home All-CCAA honors for their efforts.
It was a pair of rookies leading UCSD to a third place team finish in the women's race, as Bre Schofield finished third overall with a time of 21:55.7 and Elena Inouye crossed the finish line with a mark of 23:12.4 to place 18th. Schofield earned All-CCAA recognition, while Inouye was named the CCAA Freshman of the Year, becoming the second straight Triton to earn the award. Jessie Bodenhamer was named the conference's top freshman in 2007.
Jessica DiMascio, Amanda Keuhn, and Brianna Alban were the final three Tritons to score on the day, placing 21st, 22nd, and 23rd, respectively.
The Triton women's are ranked fifth in the West Region entering Saturday's race.
Both of head coach Nate Garcia's squads will be seeking a return to the NCAA National Championships when the gun goes off on Saturday. UCSD's men advanced to the championship meet for the first time since 2003 a year ago, while the women made a sixth consecutive D-II Championship appearance.
The Triton harriers have fared well on their home course this season, sweeping a meet with Point Loma Nazarene, USD, and UNLV on August 29, before recording back-to-back second place finishes in the annual UCSD Triton Classic on October 11. The teams from the University of Alaska Anchorage had a strong showing at the Triton Classic, sweeping both the men's and women's team titles in what served as a preview of this Saturday's D-II West Regional.
