STOCKTON, Calif. – Cal State East Bay women's cross country claimed a third-place team finish at the Pacific Invite on Friday evening, led by a top-15 effort from senior Rachael Simpson.
 
Simpson delivered a strong race for the Pioneers, surging through the course in 23:56.0 to place 13th overall in a field dominated by host Pacific and UC Santa Cruz. Junior Nelly Isidro was next across the line for East Bay, clocking 25:14.6 for 22nd place.
 
The Pioneers' depth came into play with seniors Madison Armstrong (25th, 26:00.2) and Jacklyn Velasquez (28th, 26:29.1) providing steady scoring marks, while freshman Gaby Sanchez (27th, 26:10.7) and classmate Miranda Salcedo (29th, 26:33.5) rounded out the lineup.
 
As a team, Cal State East Bay tallied 98 points with a combined time of 2:07:50, finishing behind only Pacific (17) and UC Santa Cruz (58) while edging out Dominican and Jessup.
 
East Bay runs again next Friday when they compete at the SFSU Invitational at Golden Gate Park.