Women's XC Wins Manny Bautista Invite in Dominant Fashion

Saturday, October 8, 2022 - 1:00 pm | Dylan Kessler

San Diego, Calif. - The Thunderbirds women's cross country team showed why were ranked as the No. 1 team in the country as they put on a dominant showing at the Manny Bautista Invite.

The meet was hosted by San Diego Mesa College at NTC Park in Liberty Station and the women raced on a 5000-meter course around the park.

125 athletes from 16 teams competed in the women's race, including top-ranked teams SDMC and Mt. SAC out of the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA).

Kate Brockman was once again the top finisher for the lady T-Birds, as she was runner-up with a time of 18:48.5. This is the fourth straight meet that Brockman has finished either first or second individually.

Taylor Jacobs (7th - 19:38.5), MaKena Thornton (17th - 20:15.2), Ryan Heiliger (19th - 20:19.6), Lucy Lines (23rd - 20:39.1), and Story Alexander (24th - 20:40.8) also represented the T-Birds.

The lady T-Birds scored 60 points, well ahead of runner-up Mt. SAC with 82 points. Central Arizona was third with 92 points.

"Wow! That about sums up the effort from our ladies today," said Head Coach Dan Pescador. "We knew going in, we are going to be running against some very good competition, and the ladies rose to the occasion. To not only win the meet but to win decisively over the #1 ranked CCCAA team and defending state champions in Mt. SAC is impressive. Everyone raced to their ability, but I was very proud of Ryan's effort. She's missed the first half of the season with an injury, but she really stepped up and competed great today. It's another big step forward for this group."

The lady T-Birds will head out to California again next week as they will compete at the UCR Highlander Invitational in Riverside on Saturday the 15th.

Click HERE to view the complete results from the Manny Bautista Invite.

T-Birds women's finishers at the Manny Bautista Invite (5,000 meters):

Kate Brockman (2nd - 18:48.5)

Taylor Jacobs (7th - 19:38.5)

MaKena Thornton (17th - 20:15.2)

Ryan Heiliger (19th - 20:19.6)

Lucy Lines (23rd - 20:39.1)

Story Alexander (24th - 20:40.8)