UC Irvine Cross Country Teams Sweep Team Titles at Vanguard Invitational
Both the men's and women's squads finished first at Mason Regional Park, with the women taking the top five individual spots in the 5K.
By Naledi Dlamini ·
UC Irvine's men's and women's cross country teams each won their team titles at the Vanguard Invitational, held at Mason Regional Park on Sept. 5.
In the men's 8K, sophomore Juan Chantaca took the individual win for the Anteaters in 24:05.8. Freshman Ziyad Abdallah, competing in his first collegiate race, was fourth in 24:57.4.
Junior Jimmy Markowicz placed fifth at 25:01.7, and freshman Mark McAleenan Jr. followed in sixth at 25:18.1. Sophomore Omar Reyes was the fifth UCI runner to finish, at 25:34.6.
Sophomore Angel Cordero, the 2025 Big West Men's Track & Field Freshman of the Year, took 13th in 26:13.5. Freshman Javin Schmitt was the last Anteater across the line, placing 17th in 26:42.8, less than two seconds behind Vanguard senior Cooper Anderson, who ran 26:41.1.
UCI's top five men finished in first, fourth, fifth, sixth and ninth places, giving the team 25 points and the victory. The Anteaters recorded a team time of 2:04:58, an average of 25 minutes per runner and 5:02 per mile.
The women's team then added its own win, claiming the top five places in the 5K. Sophomore Liana Lee led the field in 17:43.4, with sophomore Anna Soares four seconds behind in second at 17:47.6.
Sophomore Rachel Moen was third in 17:51.1, and freshman Grace Baxter was fourth in 17:52.2, one second behind Moen. Junior Marjourie Lopez secured fifth at 17:54.6, and UCI won the meet with 15 points.
The remaining Anteater scorers also placed in the top 20. Senior Nicole Contreras was 11th in 18:33.5, and sophomore Malia Leupold was 12th in 18:42.4. Sophomore Breckyn Kornachuk finished 17th in 19:06.8, and freshman Avery Hutchison was 19th in 19:55.7.
The women's team time was 1:29:09, with the top five runners averaging 17:50 for the race, or 5:45 per mile.
Both squads will next compete at the UC Riverside Invitational at the UCR Ag Ops Course on Sept. 27. The women are scheduled to start at 7:15 a.m. in what will be their second meet of the season.
Source: New University (UC Irvine)
