LA JOLLA, Calif. — The UC San Diego cross country teams will stay close to home as they compete at the Cougar Challenge in San Marcos on Saturday, Sep. 23.
 
The course will take place at Mangrum Track and Field Complex where UC San Diego will compete in the men's 8K and the women's 6K races. The gold and blue will join the field with 21 other teams and field 24 runners.

DETAILS
Cal State San Marcos Cougar Challenge
Saturday, Sept. 23 | Mangrum Track and Field Complex | San Marcos, Calif.
Women's 6K – 8:30 am | Men's 8K – 9:15 am
Forecast: High of 74 with a low of 56; partly cloudy with 67% humidity
Live Results

LAST TIME OUT
UC San Diego's two cross country squads competed in the Waves Invitational hosted by Pepperdine on Saturday morning in Malibu. The men's squad took first with seven Tritons finishing in the top 15.
 
The men's team finished first with 36 points and the women tied for third with USC at 101 points. Jordan Haney and Isabelle Shepherd went on to sweep Big West Athletes of the Week honors for their performances.
 
HANEY AND SHEPHERD SWEEP BIG WEST WEEKLY HONORS
This is the first time UC San Diego has earned cross country weekly honors from the Big West conference.
 
Jordan Haney led the Tritons in 2022 as the top finisher at multiple meets, he has continued that trend in 2023 as the Triton top finisher at the Mark Covert Classic and the Waves Invitational. This past weekend, Haney finished sixth for the gold and blue, scoring three points and leading the charge of nine Tritons in the top 15. The Carlsbad product finished with a time of 18:36.3 helping propel the team to a first-place finish.
 
Similar to her male counterpart, Isabelle Shepherd has been a top finisher for the Tritons since the 2022 season, and has led the Triton women in both meets of the 2023 season so far. The San Diego native finished 11th at the Waves Invitational this past weekend to lead the gold and blue to a third-place tie with USC. This was the Triton women's best finish since taking second at the UC Davis Stump Invite in 2021.
 
2022 WRAP UP
Entering their final season of the NCAA Division I reclassification, the Tritons wrapped the 2022 season with both squads finishing in the top 15 finishes at the Bronco Invitational. During the season, the women were able to defeat Cal for the first time in program history at the UC Riverside Invite and the men's side took a victory over UC Santa Barbara which they have not done in quite some time. Individually, three Tritons on both squads led their teammates over the course of the season. Head coach Nate Garcia '00 chatted about the season on ESPN with Steve Quis, watch.
 
VETERAN PRESENCE
Returning to represent the gold and blue on the women's side are Allyson Abandonato, Lauren Delgado, Emma Dunmire, Ashley Faller, Leila Keyvan, Hailey Kirsch, Lauren Lapporte, Sylvana Northrop, Chelsey Romo, Jenna Satovsky, Isabelle Shepherd, and Kelsie Yamano. For the men's side, Zeno Castiglioni, Charlie Frank, Thomas Fry, Nathan Garderes, Ian Gerth, Jordan Haney, Evan Hild, Michael Julian, Nicco Pompili, Andrew Schulz, and Luke Stefanou will all return.
 
Isabelle Shepherd and Jordan Haney are the captains leading the squads this season.
 
NEW TRITONS JOIN THE SQUAD
UC San Diego's cross country roster features 14 new faces for this season. On the women's side: Amber Boothby, Meilani Castillo, Norah Dulaney, Roxanne Ehrig, Michelle Huerta, Camille Lindsay, Kimberly Willard, and Hinako Yamamoto are all incoming freshmen. Stella Gladden joins the women's squad as a sophomore transfer from NYU. On the men's side: Shane Badcock, Rory Catsimanes, Corbin Hobert, and Tate Meaux are the incoming freshmen, and Kai Dettman joins the team from Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.
 
ABOUT THE COACHES
Head Coach Nate Garcia '00 is entering his 17th year as head coach of UC San Diego's cross country program and his 26th season as a Triton, having been a four-year scholar-athlete and serving five years as an assistant coach. Since his promotion to head coach ahead of the 2007 season, the Tritons made seven appearances at the NCAA Division II Championships. He is joined by Meriah Earle, who is back for her second season with the team. To learn more about coach Earle, click here.
 
GARCIA LOOKS BACK AT TRITON MEMORIES ON UC SAN DIEGO ATHLETICS' PODCAST
Produced by UC San Diego Athletics Communications, Tritoncast features in-depth interviews with UC San Diego personalities including scholar-athletes, alums, coaches, and administrators. Head coach Nate Garcia '00 joined the show to reflect on his time as a Triton and how campus has changed. Each week on the show, Triton fans will get an inside look at the UC San Diego Athletics Department as the program transitions to NCAA Division I and The Big West. New episodes of Tritoncast are available each week on most popular podcasting apps. In addition, each episode can be heard and downloaded on UCSDTritons.com. For individual show information and listen links, follow Tritoncast on Twitter @Tritoncast.
 
WHY THE TRITONS?
The Triton is described as the offspring of Poseidon and Amphitrite, a demigod of the sea with a lower part of the body like that of a fish. It is known as a mighty and fierce sea warrior. Given UC San Diego's proximity to the Pacific Ocean and its connections with the world-famous Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the Triton became our mascot in 1964.

GET SOCIAL WITH UC SAN DIEGO CROSS COUNTRY
Keep up with the Tritons all season long on social media through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The team's handle is @ucsdxc.

FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are eighth grade or under, check out the Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UC San Diego home athletic events, and much more!

GEAR
For the latest Triton apparel and accessories, click here.
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.