FOOT LOCKER WEST REGIONAL: MATUSAK RUNS HIS RACE AT REGIONAL.Byline: Lauren Gustus Staff Writer WALNUT walnut, common name for some members of the Juglandaceae, a family of chiefly deciduous, resinous trees characterized by large and aromatic compound leaves. Species of the walnut family are indigenous mostly to the north temperate zone, but also range from Central - Loyola of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. runner Mark Matusak wasn't the top finisher at the Foot Locker Foot Locker, Inc. (NYSE: FL) is a major American sportswear and footwear retailer, with its headquarters in New York City, and operating in approximately 20 countries worldwide. It is the successor corporation to the F.W. Woolworth Company (“Woolworth’s”). West Regional cross country meet Saturday at Mt. San Antonio College Mt. San Antonio College (commonly called Mt. SAC; pronounced as the word "sack") is a community college located in the Los Angeles suburb of Walnut, California, next to California State Polytechnic University, Pomona which is just over a hill. Mt. . He wasn't trying to be. The region's top returning runner from last year's Foot Locker National Championships, Matusak ran a conservative race and finished fourth, completing the 3.1-mile course in 15 minutes, 49 seconds. He was 10 seconds slower than first-place runner Kenneth Cormier of Douglas, Ariz. The top eight male and female finishers from each of four sectional sec·tion·al adj. 1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of a particular district. 2. Composed of or divided into component sections. n. races, and the top two individuals at Saturday's Nike Team National race in Portland, Ore., move on to the nationals Dec. 11 in San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. . For Matusak, the only area runner to qualify, Saturday's run was about making sure he didn't use up all his energy. The Cubs' top runner reached the nationals in 2003, as a junior, but he had nothing left for the biggest race of the year, having overworked himself the week before. Not this time. ``He's saved a lot,'' coach Lalo Diaz said. ``Last week at the state meet, I asked, `How much?' He knew what I was saying, and he said, 'About 80 percent effort.' ``The thing is to qualify here and then cut it all loose next week.'' Matusak said: ``I felt a lot better this year than I did last year. I controlled the race today when I wanted to.'' The race was tight until about 1 1/2 miles in - no one wanted to fall behind, and everyone was fast enough to keep up. The lead pack - roughly 30 racers - completed the first 400 meters in 62 seconds. Because the trail is narrow at certain points, runners were bunched more than usual. ``The goal was to survive the first mile,'' Diaz said. ``If some maniac ma·ni·ac n. An insane person. maniac one affected with mania. goes out at that pace, it's all adrenalin. The group didn't thin until it started up into the first of two large hills. Cormier made his move, inching away from Matusak and the rest, on the second hill. In the girls race, Marie Lawrence of Reno, Nev., took first place in 17:56. Lawrence finished second last year at the nationals as a freshman. Highland of Palmdale's Alyssa Craft (19:14) finished 19th, and Saugus' Shannon Murakami (19:18) was 22nd. Lauren Gustus, (818) 713-3607 lauren.gustus(at)dailynews.com |
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