The Cal Poly Pomona cross country teams will host the 2010 California Collegiate Athletic Association Championships this weekend at Whittier Narrows Regional Park.
In the 2009 conference championships on the men’s side, the Broncos finished second to Chico State. The Wildcats enter this year’s meet as the favorite once again, with CSUC holding the top spot in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Association (USTFCCA) West Region rankings.
“It’s going to take a championship attitude and a championship race from our team,” CPP head coach Troy Johnson said. “We’ve prepared the best we can. The rankings don’t matter at this point, it’s all about what happens Saturday.”
The Broncos will look to carry over their momentum from last month into November, after CPP took first at the UC San Diego Triton Classic while topping CCAA rival UCSD by five points. Leading the Broncos in that race was senior Matthew Prentice, who put together CPP’s top time in that event for the second-straight year.
This Saturday’s men’s race will start at 9 a.m., while the women’s event begins at 10 a.m.
Scouting the Field
Aside from Chico State holding the top spot in the latest USTFCCCA regional poll, four other CCAA squads are featured in the rankings. The Broncos are ranked No. 6, the Tritons of UCSD are at No. 7, Humboldt State stands at No. 8 and San Francisco State holds the final No. 10 spot. The Wildcats’ top returner is senior Brett Handa, who finished second in last year’s championships behind teammate Jimmy Elam. UCSD’s top runner is Jesse Morrill and in the Triton Classic about a month ago, he placed just ahead of Prentice.
Past Postseasons
After a second-place finish in the 2009 CCAA Championships, the Broncos went on to compete at the NCAA Division II West Regionals held at San Francisco State. There, CPP took fifth with 129 points, as CSUC finished first with 42 points. This season, the D-II regional event will be held at Lake Padden Park in Bellingham, Wash., with Western Washington hosting. The last NCAA Championships appearance for the CPP men’s cross country team came in 2006, when the Broncos finished 17th overall.
About the Course
Whittier Narrows Regional Park is the site of both this weekend’s meet and the CCAA Championships. The park holds Legg Lake, which is circled by the runners as part of the 8,000-meter men’s course. If using a map service online, the address of 600 Santa Anita Ave., Whittier, CA, is approximately the parking lot that is set up for race visitors.
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