FINAL RESULTS

FRESNO -- Cal State LA's men's and women's cross country teams got their seasons underway with an admirable showing at the third annual Seawolf Invitational.

The meet was held at Fresno's Woodward Park.

Cal State LA's men's team was led by newcomer Ezequiel Soto, while Nelly Garnica was the No. 1 runner for the women's team.

The Golden Eagle men finished sixth out of nine teams with a total of 148 points. Stanislaus State won the race with 26 points and led a 1-2-3 California Collegiate Athletic Association finish with Cal State Monterey Bay taking second with 78 points and Cal State East Bay placing third with 88 points. UC Merced, which will be joining the conference in the 2025-26 season, was fifth with 126 points.

Soto, a junior from Glendale Community College, had a strong debut for Cal State LA. He finished 11th with a time of 21:31.64 over a four-mile course at Woodward Park. David Rush, Cal State LA's No. 1 runner last season, was next for the Golden Eagles after finishing 28th with a time of 22:41.58. Christian Perez was 35th in 23:16.53, Trent Osburn was 40th in 23:37.62 and David Bonds was 41st in 23:43.13 to round out the top five.

"I was very excited to race today. I knew that running at the D2 level would bring a lot of competition and this race proved that. My goal was to be as relaxed as possible and find a good rhythm throughout," Soto said. "I was able to find a good pack to run with in the race despite a pretty quick first mile and was able to ride off their pace. As for our men, we put in a lot of effort today, and I think a lot of people will be surprised with how far we can go. It's only up from here and we will sharpen up even more the further we go into season."
 
Miguel Morales was 53rd in 24:07.07, Nicholas Delgado was 58th in 24:40.77, Brandon Rivas-Gramajo was 62nd in 25:24.96, Damian Bonds was 66th in 25:45.84, Joshua Lovato was 67th in 25:46.08, Carlos De Luna was 81st in 29:08.94, John Covarrubias was 82nd in 29:16.85 and Gerardo Zuniga was 83rd in 29:31.65.

"I think today's meet was a good opening run for us," Cal State LA assistant coach Orentheus Hutcherson said. "The men and women both ran a lot better than last year. I expect that to continue for the whole season. Nelly Garnica ran really well on the women's side. She set some goals over the summer and worked hard to reach them. The other ladies are looking better as well. I'm sure they will improve as the season continues. On the men's side, I saw a lot of improvement over last year's start. Ezequiel Soto ran well for us today. As with the women, I saw a lot of improvement in the men's first race as well. The guys are working well together and will improve as the season progresses."

Cal State LA's women finished sixth with 180 points and had seven runners competing. Host Sonoma State won the race with 23 points, ahead of second-place Stanislaus State and third-place Cal State Monterey Bay.

Garnica led the way after placing 32nd with a time of 20:52.35 over a 5,000-meter course. Newcomer Mikaela Holguin was next, finishing 49th in 22:19.27. Norma Martinez, the No. 1 runner for Cal State LA last season, finished 52nd in 22:54.82, Paula Romo was 56th in 23:46.51 and Jasmine Trujillo completed the top five by finishing 61st in 24:16.83.

"Our goal was just to finish the race and see what our starting point is, and that's exactly what we did!" Garnica said. "Everyone went out there and did great, even if it was like 100 degrees out there. We had lots of improvement compared to last year. Now we just have to continue to show up to every practice and every race and continue to improve throughout the season."

Alexis Lopez was 68th in 27:41.00 and Jaqueline Monroy was 70th in 28:03.45 for the Golden Eagles.

"We had a strong team opener. Both our men's and women's teams have been pushing each other at practice, which showed in today's races," head coach Tina Fernandez said. "We had a group of new Golden Eagles running their first race. They are hungry for more improvements and excited for the season. It was great having a number of Golden Eagle fans traveling out to cheer on our team. We are humbly thankful for all their love and support."

Cal State LA will return to action next Friday at the Biola Invitational.