The University of Minnesota men's and women's cross country teams opened their 2011 seasons with perfect 15-points victories in their respective meets over the weekend.The #27-ranked Gopher men swept the top five places at the Hornet Jamboree hosted by Sacramento State University in California.
Junior Pieter Gagnon, senior Hassan Mead, and sophomore Andrew Larsen, took the top spots, finishing together at 19:28 on the 4 mile course. Sophomore Erik Truedson was fourth at 19:33 and red shirt freshman Marcus Paulson ran 19:34 for fifth.
Fresno State finished runner-up with 91 points; host Sacramento State was third with 93.
"I thought overall we had a pretty good performance," Gopher head coach Steve Plasencia said. "I wanted the guys to stay in a pack for the first two and half miles and they did just that. The guys have worked hard all summer long and they certainly showed that today. I think we are in good shape to have a good season as long as we can stay healthy."
The #30 Gopher women swept the first 12 places at the Oz Memorial Run they hosted at the Les Bolstad Golf Course. Senior All-American Stephanie Price won the 6K race for the second consecutive year, clocking 21:18.
Sophomore Ashlie Decker crossed the finish line in second at 22:22, sophomore Katie Moracewski took third with 22:30, freshman Molly Kayfes finished fourth at 22:35 in her first collegiate race, and sophomore Kelli Budd ran 22:36 to round out the top five.
Northern Iowa finished runner-up in the meet with 76 points. North Dakota State edged South Dakota State for third 83-84.
Hot racing conditions were the bigget challenge to the Gophers.
"Today was so hot," head coach Gary Wilson said. "It was about 15 degrees warmer than normal, it was about 90 out there and that is a little bit much for cross country. Overall it was a good start and the Griak [Invittional] will be another level."
Find men's complete results HERE and women's results HERE.
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