Titan Men Fourth, Women Eighth at Big West Meet Nov. 1, 2003 – San Luis Obispo, Calif.
Bryce Lighthall ran 15th, Nick Arciniaga was 19th and Jordan Horn was
22nd Saturday morning to lead Cal State Fullerton to a fourth-place finish
in the Big West Conference Cross Country Championships at Cuesta College.
The Titan women finished eighth among 10 teams with Pam Roque leading
the way in 38th place.
Sean Ricketts led Cal Poly to its fourth Big West men's cross country
championship in six years while Stephanie Rothstein helped UC Santa Barbara
capture the women's crown.
Ricketts, a senior who placed third a year ago, won the men's
individual title with a time of 25 minutes, 38.2 seconds on an
8,000-meter course and led a 1-2-3 Mustang finish. Junior Ryan
Moorcroft was second in 25:38.9 while junior Mario Macias was third
in 25:39.3.
Cal Poly, with seven finishers in the top 14, won the men's
conference title with 23 points, followed by UC Santa Barbara with 79
points and UC Irvine with 129 points.
The Mustangs had won conference titles in 1998, 1999 and 2000.
Cal Poly junior Luke Llamas was sixth in 25:47.0, sophomore Brandon
Collins placed 11th in 25:58.8, sophomore Nathan Brassmassery
finished 12th in 25:59.7 and freshman Matt Johnsrud was 14th in
26:13.8.
On the women's side, Rothstein, 15th as a freshman a year ago,
claimed the women's individual title with a time of 22:14.8 for 6,000
meters and led a 1-2-3-4 Gaucho sweep.
Sophomore Lauren Christman was second in 22:27.0 while junior Cosette
Smith placed third in 22:36.1 and junior Desiree Leek fourth in
22:44.5.
UC Santa Barbara won the team title for the second time in four
years, scoring 27 points. Utah State was second with 66 points while
2002 champion Idaho finished third with 94 points.
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Idaho junior Letiwe Marakurwa, last year's conference champion,
dropped out of the race Saturday near the three-mile mark complaining
of dizziness. She held a 20-yard lead over the rest of the field.
Ricketts and Rothstein were named athletes of the year. Cal Poly
men's coach Mark Conover and UC Santa Barbara women's coach Pete
Dolan were named Big West Coaches of the Year.
The conference meet was moved from UC Riverside to Cal Poly because
of the ongoing wildfires and smoky conditions in Southern California.
The NCAA Division I West Regional will be held in Portland, OR, on
Saturday, Nov. 15, with the national championships slated for Monday,
Nov. 24, in Waterloo, Iowa.
