Cross Country Readies for Pac-12 Championships
LOS ANGELES – UCLA Cross Country is heading to the Pac-12 Championships on Friday, Mar. 5. The meet will be held at Chambers Creek Park in University Place, Wash.
Meet Information – Pac-12 Championships
Pac-12 Networks is set to cover the live race action from Chambers Creek Park. Races are scheduled to commence at 11:00 a.m. PT.
Notes on the Bruins
- The UCLA women's and men's teams won each of their regular season team titles (Arizona Invitational, Dave Murray Invitational).
- The Bruin men swept the 8k at the Arizona Invitational (Feb. 5), going 1-5 for 15 total points.
- Freshman Michael Mireles won the men's 8k at the Arizona Invitational (Feb. 5), clocking time of 25:15.3 for the victory in his UCLA debut.
- Five Bruins, including Mireles, ducked under 25:15.3 the second time the team raced in Tucson, Ariz., at the Dave Murray Invitational (Feb. 19).
- The Bruins have run Eight true or redshirt freshmen on the men's side and four true or redshirt freshmen on the women's side this season.
- UCLA has recorded a top-4 finish in each of its four total races this season.
Team History – UCLA at Pac-12 Championships
The 2019 Pac-12 Championships saw the men's squad take fourth place and the women's team take eighth place overall. Robert Brandt (23:11.9) led the way for the men with a fifth-place finish on the 10k course while Garrett Reynolds secured 10th place with a time of 23:21.0. Christina Rice paced the Bruin women in 17th place on the 6k course. Emma Tavella (45th) and Jackie Garner (50th) also picked up top-50 finishes.
The Bruin men won back-to-back Conference titles in 1980 and 1981. The 1980 league meet saw Bruin Ron Cornell take the individual title with a 10k time of 30:26.5. Karen Hecox was the next UCLA runner to win an individual Conference title, notching consecutive wins in 1993 and 1994. Meb Keflezighi went on to win the 1996 title.
Meet Recap – Dave Murray Invitational (Feb. 19)
The Bruins competed at the Dave Murray Invitational in Tucson, Ariz., coming away with team victories on the men's and women's sides for the second-straight meet to open the 2021 campaign. Both squads knocked off several Pac-12 foes en route to team titles.
The UCLA men used a strong front-running contingent to lead much of the race and place five runners in the top 10, scoring 34 points for the victory. The women's squad battled in the final stretch of the race to make up ground, securing a comeback one-point win with 59 points overall. Peter Herold led the men's scoring group with a fourth-place finish in the 8k, clocking a time of 24:42.3. Darius Riley crossed in fifth place with a time of 24:44.3. Freshmen Michael Mireles (24:50.3) and Anthony Stone (24:54.3) went 7-8, respectively. Sophomore Emma Tavella paced the Bruin women for the second-straight meet, taking third place with a 6k time of 21:43.5. Senior Paige Carter and junior Gwyn George went 12-13, crossing with times of 22:24.0 and 22:29.2, respectively.
Meet Recap – Arizona Invitational (Feb. 5)
UCLA's men's and women's cross country squads came away with team victories at the Arizona Invitational, kicking off the 2021 season in impressive fashion. The Bruin men swept the first five positions for 15 total points in the 8k, while the UCLA women placed five in the top nine to score 23 points for the 6k victory.
Michael Mireles ed the way for the men's squad, as the freshman earned a debut victory with a time of 25:15.3. Fellow first-year Ronan McMahon-Staggs took second place with a time of 25:19.5, and redshirt freshman Peter Herold finished third (25:22.6) in his first race donning the four letters. The Bruin women were paced by sophomore Emma Tavella, who secured a runner-up showing with a 6k time of 21:51.6. Senior Paige Carter was UCLA's second runner on the day, finishing fourth with a time of 22:18.9. Sophie Scott (22:45.9), Savannah Scriven (22:47.4), and Kira Loren (22:51.3) went 7-8-9 to wrap the Bruins' scoring group.