Team captain Dean Roell passed dozens of runners in the last two miles on Friday to move from 48th to 22nd at the Ventura Invitational, leading SBCC in its first women's cross country meet of the season.
Roell, a sophomore from Cabrillo High in Lompoc, was clocked in 24:09 for the 5-kilometer race at Arroyo Verde Park. The Vaqueros only sent three runners out in the season opener.
"Normally we wouldn't be racing at all for another three weeks, but this is a particularly technical course, so I thought it would be a good idea to get some of our runners out on the course, so we are better prepared for the WSC Championships in October," said coach Scott Fickerson.
Freshman Camille Schutze took 41st out of 82 finishers, clocking 25:17 on a hilly course in her first college race. Carly Seidel was 63rd in 28:15.
"The ladies all ran smart races, going out conservatively and moving forward through the field," Fickerson explained. "They accomplished our goal of getting a good solid effort in, working out the first-race jitters and touring the course."
College of the Canyons won the team title with an impressive 15 points, led by race winner Shalyn Mabritto in 21:15.
The Vaqueros will take three weeks off, then compete in the Southern Cal Preview on Sept. 19 in Van Nuys.
