LBSU runners compete at Regionals

The Stanford Cardinals swooped down on the cross country Division 1 NCAA West Regionals and grabbed first place  Saturday, but that did not seem to matter to The Beach.

"It was a great experience," Assistant Coach Dana Colligan Gutierrez said. "There were a lot of positives. It was an excellent meet to be a part of."

There were six runners from Long Beach State that ran in the meet.

Leading the women was senior Mary Colburn, who placed 51st out of 192 runners with a time of 22:01. Senior Christine Riel came in 61st at 22:14 and freshman Drea Palacio was 92nd at 22:50.

"Overall, we did really good," Palacio said.

The men were led by freshman Aaron Durham, who came in 63rd out of 151 at 32:32. Seniors Derek DeCicco clocked in at 34:24 for 110th place and Larry Henderson at 35:20 for 130th.

The fast pace and deep field of runners helped the Long Beach State runners, Colligan Gutierrez said.

"They were really sprinting to get ahead of the runners around them at the finish," she said.

The course involved a 10K for the men and a 6K for the women.

The increased length of the races did not phase the Long Beach State runners.

"I've been training themÖthey have the strength to go the extra distance," Colligan Gutierrez said.

Colligan Gutierrez was especially impressed with Palacio and Durham, the two LBSU freshmen running in the meet.

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