Lumberjacks Capture Rain-Soaked George Kyte Classic Titles
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – On a
rainy, blustery day at Buffalo Park, the Northern Arizona cross
country teams beared the elements to capture the 2009 George Kyte
Classic men’s and women’s titles.
Both teams collected victories over in-state foes Arizona, Arizona
State and Central Arizona.
Senior Veronica Pohl captured the women’s individual title
when she finished the 5,000m race in 17:16, and sophomore Diego
Estrada took the men’s title with a time of 24:57, 1:11
seconds better then his time last year.
Interim Track and Field Director Eric Heins was pleased with what
he saw from the women in their first race of the year.
“It was a good race for the women. I was hoping to see them
a little more packed up, but I think Veronica got a little excited
with two other competitors in front of her,” said Heins.
“They went well together through the mile. Overall, I saw a
lot of good things from the girls and they were very
competitive.”
The men’s performance also gave Heins a lot of confidence as
they begin the season.
“The guys who ran in uniform did a great job of staying
packed up just like we wanted to,” noted Heins. “They
ran that perfectly. I think that is a good opener for us. Next we
head to San Diego, so we should have more people in uniform
then.”
With the threat of rain looming, the women hit the course just
before 1:30 p.m. Following up the impressive run of Pohl were
sophomores Kortnee Burton (17:54) and Haley Lawrence (18:25), who
finished the race fourth and 10th respectively. Rounding out the
scoring for the Lumberjacks were juniors Amanda Griggs (18:27) and
Nikki Codd (18:34).
A third of the way through the men’s race, a downpour
ensued, leaving the competitors soaked as they finished the
course.
Andrew Belus was the first Lumberjack to cross the finish line as
Estrada ran unattached in the event. The junior finished the race
in 25:39, over a minute better than his time in last year. Juniors
Jason Pederson (26:00) and Simon Gilna (26:01) followed up Belus
with third and fourth place finishes. Eric Lynch (26:22) and Kam
Holbrook (26:34) rounded out the top-five finishers for the
Lumberjacks, as the juniors finished the race seventh and eighth
respectively.
Estrada was very pleased with the effort he put forth capturing
the men’s title.
“It got a bit competitive out there, but I kept the pace
under control,” said Estrada. “I have to say the race
went well. I don’t think I took it to the well, it just felt
pretty comfortable. The other guys looked good too. Right now
everyone is doing there work and they are ready to go.”
The Lumberjacks hit the road for the remainder of the season, with
both teams set to compete at the Aztec Invitational, hosted by San
Diego State on September 19.
