Results

CERES, Calif. -- For the second straight year, the Cal State East Bay men's cross country team enjoyed an historic day at California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Championships. The Pioneers placed fourth at River Oaks Golf Course, the program's highest finish since joining the conference in 2009.

Sophomore Pedro Cruz led the way for East Bay with a 13th place individual finish, becoming the first male Pioneer runner ever to earn All-CCAA honors.

The Pioneers accumulated 114 points, putting them just three points ahead of fifth-place UC San Diego and five points behind third-place Cal State San Marcos. As expected, that trio finished in a tight group behind Chico State, which won its 16th straight title, and second-place Cal Poly Pomona.

This 2017 championship meet was yet another step forward for the Pioneer men under third-year head coach Tony Nicolosi. In 2016, Cruz led the squad to fifth place and was the team's top finisher in 29th individually. This year, East Bay had three runners finish inside the top 25.

Cruz's 8k time of 25:03.8 gave him the highest individual finish ever by a male Pioneer runner at CCAA Championships. With Chico State runners taking up 10 of the 15 All-Conference spots, Cruz's All-CCAA honor is a tremendously impressive feat.

Senior Chris Lessard just missed All-CCAA recognition with a 17th place finish. He ran his fastest race as a Pioneer, improving his personal best 8k time by three seconds and moving up to No. 6 on the program's all-time rankings with a time of 25:14.0. 

Esteban Leon ran an outstanding race as well, and his 23rd place finish was crucial to East Bay overcoming UCSD for fourth in the team standings. He was followed by the trio of Leo Skellenger, Israel Sotelo, and Alberto Venegas, who finished in a group in 37th, 38th, and 39th place. Miguel Morales was not far behind in 46th place, checking in as CSUEB's seventh scoring runner.

Zach Kanlong capped off an impressive senior season with a personal best time of 26:21.7. He placed 49th as CSUEB's eighth finisher, followed by Jesus Leon in 54th and Jeremy Shaw in 72nd.

In the program's first six seasons as members of the CCAA, the Pioneers never had a runner break 27 minutes at the championship meet. Then last year, they made a massive leap forward with seven men checking in under 27 minutes. This year, nine of Nicolosi's ten runners accomplished the feat.

The future appears to be even brighter for East Bay, which has established itself as a legitimate competitor in this tough conference. Eight of the team's 10 runners at CCAA Championships today are underclassmen, a group that will be hungry to take yet another step forward next Fall. 

But in the meantime, the Pioneers will prepare for NCAA Division II West Regionals, taking place in two weeks in Monmouth, Ore., and turn their attention to improving on last year's 17th place finish. East Bay entered this week as the No. 10 ranked team in the West Region, but it should perhaps be higher after CSUEB topped No. 6 ranked UC San Diego today in Ceres.


CAL STATE EAST BAY RESULTS
2017 CCAA Championships

13. Pedro Cruz, 25:03.8
17. Chris Lessard, 25:14.0
23. Esteban Leon, 25:31.4
37. Leo Skellenger, 26:00.8
38. Israel Sotelo, 26:02.2
39. Alberto Venegas, 26:02.5
46. Miguel Morales, 26:16.0
49. Zach Kanlong, 26:21.7
54. Jesus Leon, 26:38.3
72. Jeremy Shaw, 27:34.1