By Carlos Reyes (@CarlosReyesSJ) – Spear Reporter
San Jose State cross country strung together a handful of brilliant individual performances at the San Francisco State Invitational on Oct. 7, 2022. Both men and women teams walked away with the eighth spot in the competition. SJSU looked to build off of its performance at the Pacific Invitational the week prior.
Men’s 8k
Simon Fraser University took the spotlight with a commanding win after five of its runners placed in the top five. Sophomore Charlie Dannatt was the top finisher for the men’s 8k with a time of 24:42.
Sophomore Omar Pina led the charge for the Spartans with a time of 26:23 and the 40th position in the race. His teammates, freshman Michael Chadwick and sophomore Christian Moreno each ran career-best times in the San Francisco fog. Chadwick ran a time of 27:12, while Moreno followed closely with a time of 27:13.
Freshman Christopher Malone got his first taste at collegiate racing with an impressive time of 26:57 and the 55th spot in the invitational.
Women’s 6k
Concordia University took first place in the women’s competition, thanks to some solid running from senior Jori Paradis. She ran away with the fourth spot in the race with a time of 24:21.
Senior Juliette Noyer was the lead runner for the Spartans with a time of 22:50 and the 24th spot in the race. Freshman Constance O’Neal continued to showcase her raw-running potential, as she finished 29th in the race and ran a personal best time of 23:03.
Freshman Nereyda Alvarez Gonzalez also ran a personal best time of 23:46, which allowed her to claim the 40th spot in the race.
“Overall, I’m very pleased with today’s effort. The men and women went out there, they got on the line and they were ready to run,” said head coach Charmaine Darden on Twitter after the meet.
San Jose State cross country will look to hit the ground running at the Bronco Invitational on Saturday in Sunnyvale, Calif.
