CBU Remains Undefeated By Sweeping Gold Races at Joe Piane Invitational Hosted By Notre Dame

Friday, October 1

South Bend, Ind.

10:15 AM/11 AM

California Baptist University

Joe Piane Invite

Photo by: Andrew Shortall

CBU Remains Undefeated By Sweeping Gold Races at Joe Piane Invitational Hosted By Notre Dame

10/1/2021 12:15:00 PM | Cross Country & Track

Results

By: Andrew Shortall, Director of Athletics Communications

NOTRE DAME – California Baptist University's cross country teams remained undefeated as they took on their biggest challenge yet. The Lancers swept both team titles in the Gold Races at Notre Dame's prestigious Joe Piane Invitational, with a field that included a number of regionally ranked teams on a hot Friday afternoon.

The Lancer women were dominant and won the team title with 44 points, an 88-point margin of victory over runner-up Charlotte (132), the No. 10 team in the Southeast Region. Five Lancers finished in the top 20 of the 171-runner field, with Greta Karinauskaite leading the way in second place overall.

California Baptist's men held off Western Athletic Conference foe Utah Valley for their victory. The Lancers posted a score of 62, with five runners in the top 27, while the ninth-ranked Wolverines of the Mountain Region took second with 78 points.

The men's race included 11 regionally ranked teams and four Power 5 Conference squads, including Cincinnati (No. 9 in the Great Lakes Region), Auburn (No. 15 in the South Region), Ohio State (No. 14 in the Great Lakes Region), Vanderbilt (No. 12 in the South Region), Clemson and Eastern Kentucky (No. 9 Southeast Region).

The women prevailed over nine regionally ranked and four Power 5 teams, as well, including Ohio State (No. 6 Great Lakes Region), Pittsburgh (No. 15 Mid-Atlantic Region), Clemson, Auburn and Kennesaw State (No. 10 South Region).

Auburn's Joyce Kimeli, the reigning NCAA 5,000-meter indoor track champion, was the only one to finish in front of Karinauskaite, taking the individual 5K crown in 17:05.5. Karinauskaite clocked a 17:15.3, while Yasna Petrova and Anna Mate came in fifth (17:25.8) and sixth (17:27), respectively.

✋ Lancers finish in the top 20 as CBU remains undefeated, winning the Gold Race team title with 44 points. It's an 88-point margin of victory over runner-up Charlotte (132).

#️⃣2️⃣ Karinauskaite
#️⃣5️⃣ Petrova
#️⃣6️⃣ Mate
#️⃣1️⃣2️⃣ Hazuchova
#️⃣1️⃣9️⃣ Viljoen #LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/KImrevDhxQ
— CBU XC & Track (@CBUXCTF) October 1, 2021

Liza Hazuchova was next in 12th place (17:41) for CBU and Anneken Viljoen rounded out the team's scorers at No. 19 (17:49.7). Karin Gosek places right behind them in 23rd (17:59.3). Cynthia Martin also took 35th (18:13.3).

A trio of CBU's men finished top eight in the five-mile event, with Ivo Balabanov (24:31.2) and Said Mechaal (24:36.3) in fourth and fifth, respectively. Florian Le Pallec took eighth place in 24:43.2, while Arturs Medveds (18, 25:06.7) and Giedrius Valincius (27^th, 25:15) rounded out the scorers.

CBU 🧹 both team titles, as the men win the Gold Race with 62 points to hold off #️⃣2️⃣ Utah Valley (78). The Lancers placed five in the top 27:

#️⃣4️⃣ Balabanov
#️⃣5️⃣ Mechaal
#️⃣8️⃣ Le Pallec
#️⃣1️⃣8️⃣ Medveds
#️⃣2️⃣7️⃣ Valincius #LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/nxoFmM2Lls
— CBU XC & Track (@CBUXCTF) October 1, 2021

Rikus Van Niekerk gave the Lancers some insurance as he finished one spot ahead of Utah Valley's No. 5 runner in 33^rd place (25:24.7). Zlatko Kozuhar also placed 51^st (25:47.1).

Massimiliano Berti finished 29th in the men's five-mile open race in 25:52.1.

The Lancers will have a week off before facing their biggest challenge of the season yet at Florida State's Pre-Nationals Meet in Tallahassee, Florida on Oct. 15. The elite event draws a number of the best teams in the country.