SUNNYVALE, Calif. – Led by another strong showing from senior Jennifer Sandoval, both the San José State men's and women's cross country teams saw success at the Santa Clara Invitational on Saturday in Sunnyvale.
Sandoval earned individual medalist honors (20:17.6 in the 6k) for the second time in three races this season, the lone outlier being a second-place showing at last month's Capital Cross Challenge. It was senior Jose Piña who impressed for the Spartans on the men's side, placing third overall in the 8k with a time of 24:01.7.
In front of everyone down the home stretch.
— SJSU Track & Field/Cross Country (@SanJoseStTFXC) October 19, 2019
A look at the victory for @that_girljenny ?? pic.twitter.com/CHOnntwsXs
"Jenny ran a fantastic race," said head coach Brad Wick after the race. "She put herself in a great position and executed her game plan very well. The women ran tough as a team and should just get stronger and stronger heading into the conference championship."
That team finished fourth out of 26 on Saturday, marking its third top-four finish in as many races. Along with Sandoval's individual title, both senior Savanna Perez (21:01.6) and sophomore Evelin Meza (21:02.3) placed inside the top-30 to lead the women's side.
Piña led SJSU to a solid 10th place showing in the men's race and was followed closely by sophomore Luis Chavez in 15th (24:29.8) and senior Edgar Bonilla at No. 39 (24:52.7). The race marked Piña's second top-three performance this season after starting the year winning medalist honors at the USF Invitational.
Bonilla's top-40 showing was especially impressive after overcoming some strange circumstances early.
"Edgar lost his shoe about a mile in and had to stop to put it on around mile two," Wick said. "He did a great job of battling back and it was good to see Jose running strong after a couple hiccups the past few weeks. Overall, I thought the guys had a really strong performance today."
Both the men's and women's teams will look to build on their strong outings when they return to action at next month's Mountain West Championship. The race is slated for Nov. 1 in Logan, Utah.
Santa Clara Invitational | Oct. 19, 2019 | Sunnyvale, Calif.
Women's 6K Results
1. Jenny Sandoval - 20:17.6
25. Savanna Perez - 21:01.6
27. Evelin Meza - 21:02.3
39. Mikayla Akers - 21:17.8
75. Camilla Hanson - 21:50.6
103. Briana Valencia - 22:11.0
131. Juliette Noyer - 22:26.9
153. Kai Bohannon - 22:51.3
Women's Team Results
1. Utah Valley - 105 points
2. Wyoming - 148
3. Rice - 157
4. San José State - 160
Men's 8K Results
3. Jose Piña - 24:01.7
15. Luis Chavez - 24:29.8
39. Edgar Bonilla - 24:52.7
93. Evaristo Mateo - 25:29.1
105. Klaus Quinonez - 25:39.8
136. Omar Piña - 26:13.4
Men's Team Results
1. UC Santa Barbara - 52 points
2. Utah Valley - 68
3. Lamar - 113
4. Pepperdine - 180
5. Santa Clara - 218
6. Loyola Marymount - 221
7. Houston - 230
8. California - 231
9. Long Beach State - 242
10. San José State - 246