Oregon State
Charles Bowles Invite
Beavers Run Away From Competition At Charles Bowles Invitational
September 29, 2012 | Women's Cross Country
Sept. 29, 2012
SALEM, Ore. - The Oregon State women's cross country team placed five runners in the top 10 and had its competitors post a 5K average time of 18:17.55, both of which helped the Beavers cruise to a victory at the 38th Annual Charles Bowles Invitational in Salem on Saturday.
With a strong team score of 28 (2-3-6-8-9), Oregon State easily topped 19 other squads to claim the title. Boise State, with whom the Beavers battled most of the morning, posted a mark of 96 (4-12-16-23-41) to take second and Portland (22-24-28-34-68) finished in third with a 176.
"Our team went out very aggressively," Head Coach Kelly Sullivan said. "I have a lot of respect for Boise State. They have a very good group and we were head-to-head at two miles, but we finished really well and very strong."
OSU's leaders started quickly from the get-go and solidified themselves amongst the pacing group before the majority pulled away from the rest of the field nearing the finish line. With 212 individual entries in the Women's Cardinal 5K, the Beavers' dominance was all the more impressive.
Sandra Martinez came in second overall with a time of 18:04.70 and was followed closely by a quartet of teammates. Kelsi Schaer finished third (18:16.97), Kira Kelly sixth (18:19.79), Kinsey Gomez eighth (18:22.84) and Taylor Nowlin ninth (18:23.45). No other team had more than one top-10 finisher.
"Sandra Martinez had a great day and Kelsi Schaer did as well - really that whole group of five," Sullivan commented. "We were really pleased with our top 10, who all ran well and finished very close to each other."
Sabrah de Voir crossed the finish line in 18:30.02 (14th), Adrienne Demaree in 18:40.72 (17th), Morgan Anderson in 18:40.82 (18th) and Haley Hunt in 18:46.32 (20th).
With a number of new faces and the majority of its entrants on Saturday being underclassmen, Oregon State is poised to turn some heads this season. Additionally, OSU held out Teresa Lawson, who ran number one for the team in her first meet in uniform on Sept. 1 and Audrey Botti, who was the Beavers' second-finisher at the NCAA West Regional a season ago, has yet to race this year. Both give them team two more fantastic options in any lineup.
"It's kind of scary when you think that only one of the 10 we ran at Pac-12's last year actually even raced today," Sullivan said. "When you think about the women who graduated, left to study abroad or went to the US Olympic Training Center for the triathlon (Erin Jones), in theory we should be decimated - not having a lot of people back. It's a brand new team, almost totally across the board, so to be running as well as we are is really a testament to their character."
Martinez's second-place finish comes on the heels of a 14th-place finish at the Pier Park Invitational earlier this month. After missing last season, her performances have given the Beavers an important boost.
"She is really, really, really talented," Sullivan said of Martinez. "It's been a long comeback for her. She missed the whole year last year, which was really challenging, but I'm really proud of the way she's coming back. She's just going to get better every week and that's what is exciting. It's encouraging to see her race as well as she is, knowing that there's quite a bit more in there."
Oregon State will have a two-week respite before two races in mid-October. The team will field lineups at both the Mike Hodges Invitational on Oct. 12 and the NCAA Preview in Louisville, Ky. on Oct. 13.
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