2017 PacWest Preview Results

BELMONT, Calif. – On a sweltering day in the Bay Area, it was a hot start for both Academy of Art University cross country teams on Saturday morning. The Urban Knights turned in two first-place team results thanks to individual No. 1 finishers and strong support in the top 10 at the PacWest Preview hosted by Notre Dame de Namur out at the Crystal Springs Cross Country Course.

"Today was a good day," said director of track & field/cross country Torrey Olson. "Both our men and women kept their effort controlled through early heat and finished strong. I was happy with the efforts and the teamwork of our packs today."

In their first action since finishing 11th at NCAA Nationals in 2016, the men's team had four individuals cross the finish line among the top eight for the first overall placement. Academy of Art's collective time of 2:21:20 bettered that of second-place Fresno Pacific (2:22:47) by over a minute and third-place UC Santa Cruz (2:24:31) by more than three minutes.

Graduate student Gatien Airiau was the leader of the pack of 54 runners, posting an 8k time of 27:24.1. Sophomore Marvin Thomas came in at fifth overall with a 28:07.4 mark while graduate students Victor Moreau (seventh) and Freddie Hessian (eighth) were just five seconds apart at 28:20.4 and 28:25.4 respectively. Junior Jarred Gregory-Grimes closed out the ART U qualifiers with a 29:03.2 time in 15th overall.

Coming off their 2016 NCAA Regionals appearance, the women's team debuted with a first-place finish on Saturday by over a minute as well. The Urban Knights, thanks to three individuals placing in the top six, completed the 6k course in a collective time of 2:08:13 ahead of Fresno Pacific (2:09:35) and Sonoma State (2:13:25).

Sophomore Swann Phelippeau had an impressive first race in the ART U red and black, leading all 68 runners with a time of 24:27.3. She was followed by junior Giulia McIsaac at 25:00.2 and redshirt senior Madeline Dignadice at 25:44.6. Although FPU's collective team finished in the top 15, important placements by junior Ashley Brown (13th, 26:20.2) and senior Jamie Morris (18th, 26:41.8) helped push Academy of Art past the Sunbirds.

"I'm very glad our runners got to preview the course before the PacWest Championships," said Olson. "Looking ahead, we have three solid weeks of training then we'll be back at SF State."

The Urban Knights will contest their first and only race at Golden Gate Park, the SF State Invitational, on Friday, Sept. 22.