The University of Redlands men's and women's cross country teams opened up the 2018 campaign by hosting the Redlands Invitational on Saturday morning. The men got off to a strong start with a second-place finish overall on the 6k course, while the women finished fourth in the team standings for the 4.5k race.
Leading the way for the men, sophomore Tucker Cargile (Denver, CO) continued his success from a year ago by taking second with a time of 19:13.5. He came in only four seconds behind the top finisher. In addition, senior Joseph Esparza (Arcata, CA) impressed in his season debut with a fifth-place mark of 19:23.9. Rounding out the Maroon and Gray's top-25 finisher, senior Benjamin Casey (Highland Park, IL), crossed the line in 20:16.4 for a 22nd-place showing.
In addition, sophomore Trevor Brouelette (Rancho Santa Margarita, CA) quickly followed in 28th with a time of 20:27.5. First-year Miguel Fausto (Whittier, CA) and senior Drew Kargol (Aiea, HI) completed the course in quick succession with respective times of 20:45.0 and 20:48.4 for 32nd and 33rd.
On the women's side, the Bulldogs did not disappoint, with junior Maria Ramirez (Orange, CA) bettering her impressive efforts from a year ago with a three-spot climb into second place. Her time of 16:45.1 provided a near-minute improvement from 2017 as well. First-year Alexis Wallace (Orangevale, CA) cracked the top-25 finishers in her collegiate debut by uncorking a time of 18:22.4 to take 24th. Sophomore Greta Jursch (Agoura Hills, CA) crossed the line in 26th with a time of 18:40.0, while first-year Isabella Glenn (Seattle, WA) was close behind in 27th with a time of 18:42.9. Seniors Ellie Ramsey (Waterbury, VT) and Emily Dabrow (North Tustin, CA) also recorded quality times of 18:58.3 and 19:07.8 for 31st and 34th place, respectively.
Cal Poly Pomona completed the race as the winner of the men's and women's competitions. Cal Poly Pomona's junior Alejandro Ambrosio captured the winning time of 19:09.5, while LA Harbor's sophomore Brenda Rosales Coria led the way for the women with a time of 16:38.7.
The Bulldogs look forward to the UC Riverside Invitational on Saturday, September 15, at 7:30 a.m.
