New campaign. Same fast 'Cats. The 5^th-ranked Chico State men's cross country team took home five of the top 10 places and rolled to victory at its season-opening Cougar Challenge Saturday morning on the campus of Cal State San Marcos. Jack Emanuel placed second, Omar Alvarez-Hernandez fifth, Rory Abberton seventh, Brayden McLaughlin eighth, and Daniel Hernandez 10^th as the Wildcats outraced runner-up Azusa Pacific 32-70 thanks to a five-man gap of just 19 seconds.
 
While the Wildcats were running for the first time this season, most of the other teams in the field were competing for the second or third time. The top-ranked team in the West Region shook off the rust just fine easily besting a number of other nationally- and regionally-ranked squads. Azusa Pacific entered ranked No. 3 in the West and No. 22 in the nation. Cal Poly Pomona (ranked No.  2 in the West and No. 17 in the nation) finished fourth. West No. 6 and race host Cal State San Marcos placed fifth and West No. 9 Stanislaus State finished sixth. Pomona-Pitzer, the top team in the NCAA Division III rankings, finished third with 77 points.
 
Chico State attacked the 8-kilometer course without two of its top returners: All-American Dylan White and All-Conference performer Charlie Giannini. But that did not keep them from taking control of the race early on. Emanuel vied for the lead throughout, eventually finishing runner-up to Azusa Pacific's Nixon Korir. They were two of five that ran under the previous course record time Saturday. Emanuel finished in 24:19.8 and Alvarez-Hernandez in 24:28.7. Abberton (24:35.0), McLaughlin (24:35.2), and Hernandez (24:38.5) also posted personal-best times at this course where the Wildcats have now competed three times since the start of last season.
 
Chico State's Joshua O'Neill finished 21^st overall and would have been a top-five scorer for any other team in the field. Bennett Woodward (31^st) and Cameron Duquette (33^rd) would have scored for all but one other team in the field. And Travis Selby (46^th) , Hunter Dougherty (57^th)  and Anders Beil (59^th) would have scored for all but two other teams. Selby and Beil were making their debuts in a Chico State uniform Saturday.
 
The Wildcats will turn to further fine-tuning their craft over the next three weeks before getting back into action at the Bronco Invitational on October 15. That will begin a stretch of three races in four weeks, culminating at the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Championships. The NCAA Regional and National Championships follow after that.
 
Team Results – 2022 Cougar Challenge
  1. Chico State – 32
  2. Azusa Pacific – 70
  3. Pomona-Pitzer – 77
  4. Cal Poly Pomona – 88
  5. Cal State San Marcos – 184
  6. Stanislaus State – 188
  7. Westmont – 210
  8. La Verne – 229
  9. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps – 233
10. Cal State East Bay – 256
11. Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) – 303
12. Hawaii Pacific – 374
13. Concordia University – 395
14. Caltech – 436
15. Chapman – 454
16. Cal State LA – 488
17. Soka – 511
 
Top 10 and Chico State Individuals
    1. Nixon Korir (APU) – 24:16.6
    2. Jack Emanuel – 24:19.8
    3. Senzo Sokhela (Westmont) – 24:24.6
    4. Salvador Capetillo (APU) – 24:26.1
    5. Omar Alvarez-Hernandez – 24:28.7
    6. Leandro Candray (CPP) – 24:32.2
    7. Rory Abberton – 24:35.0
    8. Brayden McLaughlin – 24:35.2
    9. Medhane Woldu (Stan. St.) – 24:35.5
  10. Daniel Hernandez – 24:38.5
  21. Joshua O'Neill – 25:07.0
  31. Bennett Woodward – 25:27.8
  33. Cameron Duquette – 25:31.1
  46. Travis Selby – 25:51.5
  57. Hunter Dougherty – 26:01.9
  59. Anders Beil – 26:05.6
  77. Jayden Olea – 26:30.0
113. Ethan Crouch – 27:12.1
121. Michael Ramirez – 27:22.4