VICTORY FOR VIKINGS WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY FINISH 3RD IN 5K, MEN’S FINISH 6TH IN 8K, NOW BOTH PREPARE FOR REGIONALS DARIEN CHASE CATCHING BALL AT ENDZONE FOR TOUCHDOWN. ERIC SHELBY/PSU VANGUARD
ERIC SHELBY
CROSS COUNTRY
Last Friday was the cross country championship with the Big Sky hosted by Portland State for the first time since 2008. Teams all across the Conference like Northern Arizona and Weber State came to Hillsboro. Early showers led to almost no clouds just in time for both races. The first race started at 11 a.m. with the women’s 5k. Katie Camarena finished fourth in the 5k with a time of 16:35.3, casually breaking yet another school record this year. According to Camarena, she felt confident after the first kilometer, unworried about getting tripped up due to being in the front. “[In] the last [kilometer], I was fourth or fifth, and everyone was trying to make an aggressive move,” Camarena said. “It was a little bit faster than I was thinking, but it felt good.” It was raining a couple hours on the course before Camarena’s race, making it more challenging. “It was very muddy and I was sliding around a bit,” Camarena said. But the atmosphere on Friday was so exciting that “just having someone at every point of the race cheering” helped Camarena stay steady at the front pack. “It was just nice to have the whole team and everyone’s friends and fans out here,” she said. Regionals take place on Nov. 12 in Sacramento— and with Camarena’s top-four finish in conference, she’s looking to go big or go home. “Definitely excited for that,” Camarena said. “[I’m] trying to be top-25 to get All-Regional and then have a chance to go to nationals. And I think the team will be in a better position too.”
8
SPORTS
Camarena praised the team’s abilities, remarking that the relative youth of some runners was impressive considering their performance. Hunter Storm was the second Vik to finish the 5k with a time of 17:15.9, followed by Liza Sajn with a 17:18.0. Portland State finished in third as a team in the 5k with 95 points. Previously, the team’s record was placing fifth. Northern Arizona finished first with a low 37 points and Weber State came in second with 51 points. The men’s 8k finished sixth overall with 146 points. Jordan Macintosh was the first Vik to finish the 8k with a time of 24:12.3. Macintosh said he was trying to run smooth for the first kilometer, attempting to stay with the front pack: “Not being too out of control, but staying within myself and running fast but smooth.” Training for everyone on the team had been going well, according to Macintosh, however one of the top three runners did not compete, though they will be back for regionals. “That will help the team a lot,” Macintosh said. 24:26.9 was Josh Snyder’s time, the second Viking to reach the end of the 8k. Dom Morganti was the third Viking with a time of 24:45.9. Northern Arizona came in first again with 30 points. Southern Utah came in second with 53 points, and Montana State had 80. The Viks now prepare for the NCAA West Regional Nov. 12 in Sacramento.
VOLLEYBALL
First things first, the Viks are currently tied for first place in the Big Sky Conference with only
four games left in the regular season. The Weber State Wildcats currently have the tiebreaker, having a 183-179 point edge over the Vikings, out of the two matches played with them. Best case scenario, the Viks will have to win their last four in hopes of Weber State falling to at least RUNNER KATIE CAMARENA ALBERTO ALONSO PUJAZON BOGANI/PSU VANGUARD one school before the season ends. The Viks quickly swept Idaho State 3-0 (25-22, 25-18 and 25-19) and regained focus for the larger match. Last week, when speaking with Portland State Vanguard, libero Ellie Snook said the team was capable of beating every team in the conference. However, the Viks had a struggle with the Cats in the first set on Saturday, unable to win in a long 34-32 loss to start the game. Snook felt the sole loss of the game came from the first set. “I think we controlled it the whole first half, and we came out really strong
PSU Vanguard • NOVEMBER 2, 2021 • psuvanguard.com
