HAYWARD, Calif., -- After nearly a month of preseason training, the 2019 season has officially arrived for the Cal State East Bay cross country teams.  The Pioneer men's and women's squads will compete for the first time this Fall on Saturday night at the annual Kim Duyst Invitational, hosted by Stanislaus State.
 
The meet takes place at River Oaks Golf Course, the same location as last year's Kim Duyst Invitational and the 2017 CCAA Championships. CSUEB has positive memories from both of those event, as the young women's squad turned in a solid effort to take second place, while the men's team took an impressive second place finish.
 
The circumstances for Saturday's race will be quite similar to 2018, as the starting gun is set to go off at 8:00 p.m. under the lights. The teams will look different as well, with a new year bringing new faces to the program.
 
On the men's side, the Pioneers have steadily improved over the last four years since Tony Nicolosi took over the program, posting three straight top-six finishes in the CCAA. Last year they finished 17th at NCAA West Regionals as Xavier Smith earned CCAA Freshman of the Year honors.
 
The men are led by a trio of seniors in Esteban Leon Julian Johnson and Ronaldo Flores Perez. Leon had a breakout junior campaign in 2017, running the third-fastest 10k time in school history at Regionals and the ninth-fastest 8k time ever at CCAA Championships. Johnson clocked the 11th-fastest 10k in school history at the 2018 West Regionals.
 
Returners Xavier Smith, Jeremy Shaw, Luke Calubayan, Bryan Llopis, Jared Berryman, John Robert Bradshaw, Melvin Esteva, Sebastian Garcia, and Oscar Mora all look to build on their strong 2018 season. The squad rounds out with four newcomers in Jacob Hackett, Maximiliano Chavez, Justin Matties, Nicholas Valencia and Miles Worthen, all of whom are capable of making an immediate impact.
 
On the women's side, there is reason for a great deal of optimism. Last year's team was made up almost entirely of sophomores and juniors who return in 2019 with another year of experience under their belts. Angie Ronquillo, Claire Fisher and Andrea Romero all had top 20 finishes at the Kim Duyst Invitational in 2018.
 
The squad features three seniors, led by Andrea Romero, Brittney Duquette and Alondra Castro Ortiz. They are joined by junior returners Jodi Go, Claire Fisher, Gisel Juarez and Jessica Mendez and a sophomore class lead by Alexandra Cholometes, Amanda Navarro and Angie Ronquillo.
 
With so many returners, the women's roster features just five new faces. Hartnell College transfer Lauryn Orozco and a host of freshman incomers in Alyssa Gallegos, Melissa Jovanna Sosa, Brooke Stevenson, Veronica Valenton and Ariel Van Riper.
 
Saturday's race in Ceres will be the first of five Northern California, including a meet in Illinois at which the Pioneers will compete as they prepare for 2019 CCAA Championships, taking place the final Saturday in October in Arcata.