Track/Cross Country Story

2003
NMJC CROSS COUNTRY
HARRIER REPORT #4

MEET: KACHINA CLASSIC, NMSU, LAS CRUCES, NM
DATE: Saturday, September 20, 2003
DISTANCE: 5K or 3.1 miles
CONDITIONS: Clear and 68°, no wind
THE COURSE: The course was 95% grass with one steep hill of 700 meters in length. The hill was located approximately 1.25 miles into the race.

TEAMS PARTICIPATING AND SCORES: 1) UTEP – 15; 2) NMJC – 51; 3) SIPI – 61; 4) EPCC – 88; 5) NMSU – no score (only 4 runners completed the race)

COACH’S COMMENTS:
After last week’s big race at UNM, it was nice to compete in a small meet. This year’s team did very well on this tough NMSU course. In the two previous seasons, we went to the NMSU meet and performed well below our potential; this year these young ladies competed and competed well. I was very proud of the effort and the improved times. As a team and as individuals we have improved from week to week. I attribute this to the consistency of the workouts and the individual desire to improve, which is evident every day in practice. It takes a special individual to accept new challenges, new coaching philosophy, new life style and environment, and continue to improve. I am lucky to have a group of young ladies who have accepted all of these changes and have the desire to get better.

I had expected to finish close to, or better than, SIPI and EPCC in last week’s meet because a larger number of participants would displace points. I was a little worried about this week’s meet; I figured the outcome could be a lot closer. When the points were tallied and we finished 10 points ahead of SIPI, I was pleased and somewhat excited about the margin of victory. With continued improvement, we will be very competitive at the national meet in November. Our next meet will be Saturday, September 27th at NMHU’s Highlands Golf Course in Las Vegas, New Mexico. The women’s race begins at 9:30 a.m.

NMJC RUNNERS, PLACES AND TIMES:
11th Jasmine Sanchez 21:12
13th Becky Zubiate 22:02
15th Rita Ameri 22:26
16th Vanessa Marquez 22:38
21st Amanda Montes 23:32
26th Josephine Jaramillo 24:53
28th Ashley Dailey 26:21

Athletes who did not run:
Carmen Diaz
Amy Petrencik

BEST PACED RACE: Becky Zubiate
BEST FINISHING KICK: Rita Ameri and Vanessa Marquez
T-BIRD OF THE WEEK: Jasmine Sanchez for finishing with a 21:12, which places her 11th on the NMJC all time list.