'Eaters Stay Local for John Elders Titan Invite on Friday

Friday, October 20

Fullerton, Calif.

TBA

UC Irvine

John Elders Titan Invite

Photo by: Robert Huskey

'Eaters Stay Local for John Elders Titan Invite on Friday

October 19, 2023 | Women's Cross Country

Live Results Meet Notes

IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's cross country team will send nine student-athletes to Cal State Fullerton for the John Elders Titan Invite on Friday, Oct. 20.

Rebecca Bronstein, Stella Knobbe, Malia Leupold, Sarahy Lopez, Diane Molina, Hana Nip, Kaitlene Ofilan, Laura Yontz and Sophia Zago will represent the Anteaters in the 5K that is scheduled for a 5 p.m. start.

QUICK HITS
• UCI finished fifth out of 17 teams at the 2022 John Elders Titan Invite.
• Diane Molina ran a personal-record 18:12.5 on the Cal State Fullerton course last year.
• Hana Nip (18:35.1) owns the top 5K time of the season among the 'Eaters competing on Friday.
• Two Anteaters have earned Big West Women's Cross Country Athlete of the Week honors this season.
• UC Irvine was 14th in the USTFCCCA Preseason West Region Rankings released on Aug. 29.

LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine finished fourth in a 21-team field at the Bronco Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 14. Sameen Andar and Anna Vogtmann both placed among the top-20 for the second meet in a row. Andar led the way as she covered the 6K course at Baylands Park in a season-best 20:06.3. She was sixth out of 187 runners. Vogtmann was also 12th in 20:21.2. Kaia Schmidt was the Anteaters' No. 3 runner, clocking a nearly 30-second personal-record 21:04.4 to come in 32nd. Malia Gay was next across the line for the 'Eaters in a season-best 21:30.5, while Montgomery Allison wasn't far behind with a lifetime-best 21:33.3. Makena Castillo (21:41.6), Tea Akiaten (22:02.6) and Olivia Liuson (22:12.2) added season bests.

DOUBLE TROUBLE
Juniors Sameen Andar and Anna Vogtmann, the Anteaters' top-two runners, both earned their first career Big West Women's Cross Country Athlete of the Week honors this season. Andar was recognized on Oct. 17 after clocking an individual and team season-best 20:06.3 at the Bronco Invitational. It was the second-fastest 6K of her career and third-fastest in the conference this year. Vogtmann received the weekly award on Sept. 19 following a career-best third-place finish at the UC Riverside Invitational. In what was her first 6K of the year, Vogtmann registered a season-best 20:19.0. Vogtmann (19:52.8) and Andar (19:57.6) are the program's only two athletes to run a sub-20-minute 6K. They established their top times at last year's Big West Championships where they earned all-conference honors.

40TH ANNIVERSARY
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the inaugural Big West Women's Cross Country Championship. The 1983 meet was a significant event as it was the first women's competition sponsored by the Pacific Coast Athletic Association (renamed The Big West in 1988), and the first women's sport sponsorship by a league west of the Rockies. In addition, it was significant for UC Irvine as it was the start of a dynasty. The Anteaters beat out UC Santa Barbara and UNLV for the first of their league-leading 12 conference titles. Lisa Gonzales claimed the individual championship and she was followed by teammates Susan Zika (2nd), Judy McLaughlin (3rd), Lorraine Mercado (5th) and Jennifer Abraham (7th).

UP NEXT
UC Irvine will make a return trip to Blacklake Golf Course in Nipomo, California, next Friday, Oct. 27, for the 2023 Big West Championships. The women's 6K is slated for a 9:15 a.m. start.