If the UCLA men’s cross country team hopes to make it to
the NCAA Championships in November, it is critical that they
perform well this Saturday. The Bruins will be competing in Tucson,
Ariz., tomorrow at the Pac-10 Championships looking to position
themselves for a successful run through the postseason. The team is
looking for a bid to the NCAA Championships and to get that bid,
they will need to put together a string of convincing wins over
quality opponents in their next two races. As has been the case all
year, the Bruins’ postseason hopes will hinge largely on the
performance of junior Austin Ramos. Ramos has been impressive all
season; most notably with his 15th place showing in a star-studded
field at the NCAA Pre-National meet three weeks ago.
“It’ll be a good opportunity to get my name out on the
national scene,” Ramos said. “It’s a great field.
If I finish in the top five I’ll be pretty happy.” Only
the top two teams in each region receive automatic bids. In the
Western Region, Stanford and Arizona are clearly the front runners
to receive those bids, meaning that the Bruins must fight for an
at-large bid. The Bruins have a solid foundation heading into the
postseason, out-performing higher ranked regional opponents Oregon,
and Washington while closing the gap on highly touted Cal Poly.
However, if they want to receive national consideration, coach Eric
Peterson knows that they must show that they can defeat these teams
on a regular basis. “We’ve beaten all those teams that
have gotten more votes than us,” Peterson said. “We are
just as capable, but we now have to show it. If we can beat these
teams now and we run well at the western regional championships,
then we have maximized our consideration for an at-large
bid.” Last year, before peaking at the Western Regionals, the
Bruins finished in fifth in the Pac-10 meet which may have played a
role in their at-large bid snubbing.
WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY: The Bruins look to
have a break-out performance this weekend in Tucson as they also
begin to gear up for a postseason run. Up to this point, UCLA has
yet to field a completely healthy team this season as they have
struggled with various injuries. However, Peterson believes that
his team is finally ready to put together the pieces and have the
type of race he has been waiting for all season. “We are as
healthy as we have been all season,” Peterson said.
“There’s always going to be some soreness, but it will
be tolerable.” Like the men’s team, the women must
establish themselves as the third-best team in the conference
behind Stanford and Arizona State if they hope to advance to the
NCAA Championships. In a fight for that third spot with the Bruins
are Oregon and Washington. “Our coaches have done a great job
preparing us,” junior Ashley Caldwell said. “If we see
a purple or green jersey, then that’s our target.” To
prevail, the Bruins will once again rely on Caldwell, an
All-American candidate. However, Caldwell stresses the importance
of a complete team performance in order for the Bruins to succeed.
“Me finishing in first instead of fifth is just as important
for a girl who may usually finish in 25th to finish in 15th,”
Caldwell said. Last year, the Bruins placed fourth at the Pac-10
meet before falling to sixth at regionals. However, the team did
receive an at-large bid, finishing 27th at the championships.