April 1, 2016
SAN FRANCISCO - Ben Branagh led a trio of Spartan middle distance runners by finishing 12th out of 204 runners in the 5,000 meter race at the San Francisco State Distance Carnival track and field meet on Friday.
"Ben was in the top heat and top heats are tricky sometimes as the guys in front are shooting for 14 minutes flat and Ben's shooting for the 14:10 to 14:15 range," said Spartans cross country coach Brad Wick. "So he got out a little too fast and in the last 3 laps, he couldn't hang onto the pace. But the 14:23 he ran is still a P.R. (Personal Record)."
Branagh's official time of 14:23.78 was almost two seconds faster than the personal record time he set at last year's Distance Carnival.
Two other Spartans ran in the 5,000m, competing for the first time in that distance in a San José State uniform.
Competing in the second heat, freshman Jose Piña finished in 14:38.16, placing him 35th overall.
"Jose ran a solid race. 14:38 is not a bad time considering he's a freshman. He can take some time off the next time he races," said Wick.
Raul Rodarte was the third Spartan to compete in the 5,000m, finishing 95th in 15:12.19.
"Raul was on pace for two miles to run sub-15 (minutes) and he was close," said Wick about the 5000m (3.11 mile) race. "All three ran good races. We're couple of weeks away from reaching the next level of fitness."
Huruy Zeratsion also made his spring season debut running the 1500m. The sophomore finished the race in 4:08.49, placing 81st overall out of 101 runners.
1,500 Meters
1. Allar Lamp, Unattached, 3:47.92; 2. Jeff Thies, Portland, 3:48.36; 3. Marc-Antoine Rouleau, Simon Fraser, 3:49.65; 4. Valentin Pepiot, Academy of Art, 3:50.08; 5. Anthony Mallory, Sra Elite, 3:50.32; 81. Huruy Zeratsion, San José State, 4:08.49.
5,000 Meters
1. Erick Rotich, Eastern Kentucky, 14:05.03; 2. Clayton Hutchins, Cal Poly, 14:05.84; 3. Swarnjit Boyal, Cal Poly, 14:05.93; 4. Noah Droddy, Roots Running, 14:06.58; 5. Will Brewster, Davidson, 14:07.79; 12. Ben Branagh, San José State, 14:23.78; 35. Jose Piña, San José State, 14:38.16; 95. Raul Rodarte, San José State, 15:12.19.