Cross country team ends season on sour note

By Jimmy Chai, On-Line Forty-Niner

Tuesday, November 3, 1998

End of the year conference meets usually sum up the season for a team, but the Long Beach State cross country team capped its season with a disappointing race, said Andy Sythe, cross country head coach.

The up and down season ended with the women's squad finishing 10th out of 12 teams and the men finishing second to last out of 10 teams in the Big West Championships Saturday in Denton, Tex.

Bree Frigo led the women's squad, ranking 17th place overall with a time of 18 minutes, 35 seconds on the five-kilometer course.

Frigo continued her consistency as the 49ers' No. 1 runner, Sythe said.

Kim Jackson, who finished the race in 34th place in 19 minutes, six seconds, also improved throughout the season as a runner and leader, he said.

Although the team did not fare well in the competition, the distance between the No. 1 and No. 5 runner was the closest so far this year, Sythe said.

Carrie Appell, who sat out the season due to regulatory requirements, ran the first meet of the season and the last race of her college career, placing 58th place with a time of 20 minutes, four seconds.

Along with Appell, senior men's runner, Bob Bacon, also ended his collegiate career placing 65th place in 29 minutes, 10 seconds.

Last season's MVP, Fred Becerra, led the team through the eight kilometer run with a 35th place finish and time of 27 minutes, 10 seconds.

Derek Decicco followed in 44th place with a time of 27 minutes, 32 seconds.

"We had to overcome our fear of pain," said Sythe, referring to the agony of long distance running. "[However], our Achilles' tendon was our lack of depth."

The men's season is over, but some of the women may compete in the NCAA Region XIII Championships in Fresno on Nov. 14, Sythe said.