`U' Heads to UC Riverside Invitational

Sept. 11, 2014

UC Riverside Invitational
Date	Saturday, Sept. 13, 2014
Location	UC Riverside Ag/Ops Course \| Riverside, Calif.
Course Length	8K
Time	Men's Invitational: 10:05 a.m. CT
Race Info	GoHighlanders.com
Twitter	@GopherMCCTF

MINNEAPOLIS (GopherSports.com) - A week after opening the 2014 season at home, the University of Minnesota men's cross country program hits the road for the first time this year with a trip to California on the docket.

The Gophers will compete in the 34th annual UC Riverside Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 13. The men's 8,000 Meter Invitational is set for 10:05 p.m. CT on the UC Riverside Ag/Ops Course in Riverside, Calif.

About the UC Riverside Invitational

The UC Riverside Invitational course is 85 percent flat with a few rolling hills and hard-packed dirt with pre-competition watering to reduce dust. The course runs through the shade of 100-year-old orange groves and eucalyptus trees.

The Ag/Ops Course is located adjacent to campus on the 420-acre Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station on the corner of Martin Luther King Boulevard and Canyon Crest Drive.

The schedule is as follows:

9:30 am - Women's 6000m Invitational

10:05 am - Men's 8000m Invitational*

10:45 am - Women's 5000m Collegiate Open

11:15 am - Men's 8000m Collegiate Open

1:45 am - Awards

*All Gophers will run in the Men's 8,000m Invitational.

Splitting Up the Team

The Gophers used half of their roster at last weekend's Oz Memorial while eight members of the Maroon & Gold will make their season debuts this Saturday.

Included in the group is incoming freshman Obsa Ali, who will compete in his first collegiate race this weekend, as well as redshirt freshmen Eric Colvin, Wayde Hall, Charlie Lawrence and Matt Welch, who will officially run for the first time as Gophers. Veterans Blayne Dulian, Christian Skaret and Aaron Bartnik round out the Maroon & Gold contingency.

Last Time Out - Oz Memorial

The Gophers kicked off the 2014 season with the Oz Memorial last Friday at Les Bolstad Golf Course with Minnesota posting a runner-up finish behind several personal records.

Adam Zutz led the way with a second-place finish and a time of 19:05.0 while Alex Brend came in fourth at 19:07.1 - a new personal six-kilometer record. Riley Macon and Brad Woodford also set new personal bests at the Oz Memorial - Macon finished eighth with a time of 19:22.1 and Woodford crossed the finish line at 19:45.3 to place 14th. Matthew Jergenson made his first official appearance as a Gopher and finished 22nd at 20:07.3 as did Derek Wiebke, who came in at 20:17.6 to place 26th. Newcomer Sam Carlson finished 15th as unattached competitor with a time of 19:48.9 while fellow incoming freshman and unattached runner Isaiah Barlow clocked a 21:18.6 to place 38th.

The Gophers totaled 49 team points, second only to Drake's 44. Northern Iowa and South Dakota State each had 60 points while Drake's Brogan Austin won individual honors with a time of 18:49.4.

Points from Plasencia

Coach Plasencia on the UC Riverside Invitationalâ€¦

"I know that Irv Ray runs a good program out there at Riverside and I'm sure that they will put on a nice meet. We expect that it is going to be warm out there, the race is at 8 a.m. local time, and the day before the race the temperature is supposed to peak out at 99 so we expect temperatures around 75 in the morning. We know that the course is through some orange groves, so it is a relatively flat and fast course. From what I have been told, some of the times that have come from this course have been very fast and so in some ways it may take on a hint of a road race so while in cross country we don't put too much stock into times, it's fun for guys to be able to run fast."

Plasencia on this week's travel rosterâ€¦

"We're going to bring some younger guys to get them into the travel mix and get them on the road. We'll bring a number of first-year guys -- Obsa Ali and Eric Colvin have never traveled with the team as well as Wayde Hall, Charlie Lawrence and Matt Welch. So five of the guys we're going to put out there have never worn a Gopher uniform in competition before so to give them an opportunity to go out and run in a good but not overwhelming field and get used to hopefully some success that will be good for them and the program to get them going. We don't quite know where these guys are. We think there is some talent in that young group and then we'll bring out some veterans as well. Aaron Bartnik has been running well and we expect big things from him this season. Blayne Dulian is the captain and a leader, Skaret has been around for a while too so there will be kind of a balance of brand new and guys who have been around for a while."

Plasencia on this weekend's level of competitionâ€¦

"I know Southern Utah has had a good team at different points over the years and they've got at least one Minnesota kid on the team so our guys are anxious to go out and compete with him. Long Beach State, UC Santa Barbara and Utah Valley are all also ranked teams regionally and so we'll get a look at those squads and anything else that comes our way. It's going to be a serious trip but also kind of a christening trip for some of these guys."

USTFCCCA Regional Rankings

The Maroon & Gold open the 2014 campaign as the eight-ranked team in the Midwest region, according to the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association preseason rankings. Oklahoma State ranks first in the region followed by Tulsa, Iowa State, Oklahoma, Illinois, Kansas and Missouri, respectively. Nebraska and Oz Memorial competing South Dakota State round out the top ten.

Among regionally ranking teams competing in the UC Riverside Invitational, Southern Utah and Utah Valley rank seventh and 11th, respectively, in the mountain region while UC Santa Barbara and Long Beach State sit 11th and 14th, respectively, in the west region.

Up Next - Roy Griak Invitational

Thirty Division I men's cross country programs are already registered for the 29th annual Roy Griak Invitational, set for Saturday, Sept. 27 at Les Bolstad Golf Course in Falcon Heights, Minn. One of the elite cross country meets in the country, the Griak hosts a total of eight races spread between high school, NCAA Division II and III and NCAA Division I. The Merrill Fischbein Men's Gold (Division I) Competition is set for 12:20 p.m. CT with the day's first race set for 8:55 a.m. Learn more at Gophersports.com/Griak.

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Players Mentioned

Obsa Ali

Isaiah Barlow

Aaron Bartnik

Alex Brend

Sam Carlson

Eric Colvin

Blayne Dulian

Wayde Hall

Matthew Jergenson

Charlie Lawrence

Riley Macon

Christian Skaret

Matt Welch

Derek Wiebke

Brad Woodford

Adam Zutz

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University of Minnesota Athletics