Coyote Classic - Men's 8k Course Map (8:00 a.m.)

Coyote Classic - Women's 6k Course Map (8:45 a.m.)

FULLERTON, Calif. – The Cal State Fullerton men's and women's cross country squads continue the 2014 season this weekend on Saturday at the Coyote Classic hosted by Cal State San Bernardino. The men's 8k run and the women's 6k course will be held at the campus of CSUSB in San Bernardino, Calif. The men's invite race will start at 8 a.m., followed by the women's invite race at 8:45 a.m.

MUSTANG CHALLENGE: The race will take place at the campus of CSUSB (5500 University Parkway San Bernardino, CA 92407).

THE COURSE: Located in San Bernardino, the course on CSUSB's campus will consist of over 90-percent dirt and grass with asphalt and road crossing.

THE FIELD: Competing alongside the Titans and Coyotes will be squads from Cal Poly, UC Santa Barbara, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Cal State East Bay, Victor Valley, Cal Poly Pomona and Cal State Los Angeles.    

RESULTS: Results will be available on Flashwest.com. Complete results will also be posted on Fullertontitans.com following the conclusion of the meet.

WE'RE HONORED: Cal State Fullerton junior Emily Taylor and sophomore Danny Ramirez swept the Big West Cross Country Athlete of the Week honors after competition at the Mustang Challenge at Central Park on Sept. 20, it was announced by the league office on Tuesday.

Taylor, running in her second 5k event this season, completed the course as the top Fullerton finisher in as many events. The native of Huntington Beach, Calif., led the team's fourth place by logging a time of 18:52.2, finishing 14th among collegiate runners.

The Titan women (112 points) placed behind The Master's College (111 points), Cal State San Marcos (55 points) and meet champion Sacramento State (49 points) as three of their student-athletes placed in the top-10 finishers.

Senior Katie Bathgate was the next Titan finisher behind Taylor, crossing the line at 19:02, finishing 20th overall. Coachella, Calif., native Ana Valdovinos rounded out the top three Titans concluding the invite in 21st, recording a time of 19:03. Four Fullerton women concluded the 5k course within the top-30 participants.

On the men's side, Ramirez captured second place on the Central Park 8k course, crossing the line in 25:59.5. He shaved 50 seconds off his previous 8k time at the Mark Covert Classic that took place on Aug. 30.

The Buena Park, Calif., native helped the Titan men (84 points) to a second place team finish just out of the reach of Cal State San Marcos (72 points), who placed a trio of participants in the top-10 on the leaderboard.

Following closely behind Ramirez was Fullerton sophomore Jose Penaloza in third with a time of 26:02. Senior Brandon Perry rounded out the top three participants at 26:37, good for 24th place overall. Five Titan men finished within the top-30 competitors. 

Top 3 Men Finishers at Mustang Challenge (8k)

Top 3 Women Finishers at Mustang Challenge (5k)

UPPERCLASSMEN LEADING THE WAY: At the Mark Covert Classic, senior Brandon Perry and junior Emily Taylor both recorded the fastest Fullerton times in any meet so far this season. Perry, a native of Irvine, Calif., ran a 26:07.8 8k, which was over 30 seconds faster than the next Titan finisher. Taylor ran an 18:50.5 5k, which was 14 seconds ahead of the mark she set last season in the 2013 Mark Covert Classic.

MAKING THEIR DEBUTS: Five Titan student-athletes made their respective debuts at the Mark Covert Classic on Aug. 30. A pair of redshirt freshman in Tanner Love (15th place; 26:45.3) and Robert Miyoshi (33rd place; 27:20.6) took to the men's 8k course. On the women's side, San Diego Mesa College junior transfer Kim Melechinsky (49th place; 20:09.9), freshman Brianna Shoffner (67th place; 20:38.7) and redshirt freshman Lauren Carr (78th place; 21:14.4) also wore the orange and navy for the first time at a cross country event. Redshirt freshman Samuel Garcia (34th place; 26:49.3) made his debut this past weekend at the Mustang Challenge on Sept. 20.

WHERE WE STACK UP: After the completion of two meets in 2014, the Titan men and women have produced 20 top-30 overall finishes to begin the season.

Fullerton Men's and Women's Top 30 Finishes (2014) 

LONGEST-TENURED COACH: As the 2014 season continues, cross country and track and field head coach John Elders logs his 27th season at the helm of each program making him the longest tenured head coach in the history of Cal State Fullerton.

The Orange County native was tied with former fencing head coach Heizaburo Okawa (1982-2006) and former men's soccer coach Al Mistri (1981-2005) for 25 years of service at Fullerton.

A LOOK AT THE 2014 TITANS: The men return six of the 12 runners who competed at the conference championships, while the women return seven of eight student-athletes.

The Titan men return 18 student-athletes from last season without any newcomers. On the women's side, another 18 total runners return while a pair of Titans join the 2014 roster, San Diego, Calif., native Kim Melechinsky, and Brianna Shoffner from Huntington Beach, Calif. 

UP NEXT: The Titans return to competition as they travel to Lawrence, Kan., for the Rim Rock Farm Classic hosted by Kansas on Saturday, Oct. 4. The meet will take place at Rim Rock Farm, 2276 Burnett Lane, Lawrence, KS 66044.

SEASON PREVIEW: Cal State Fullerton head cross country coach John Elders sat down with Fullertontitans.com to discuss the outlook on the 2014 season, filmed in stunning high-definition by department videographer Matt Brown.

#ALSIceBucketChallenge: Head men's and women's cross country and track and field coach John Elders accompanied a host of Cal State Fullerton student-athletes at Titan Stadium to take part in the ALS ice bucket challenge to raise awareness of the neurodegenerative disease.