CSUN University News Clippings

Strenkowsi

.tools_inner_dyn { padding: 0px !important; height: 120px !important; line-height: 8px; } .tools_inner_dyn a { line-height: 8px; } .tools_outer_dyn { height: 120px !important; } .h7 { font-size: 14px !important; font-weight: bold; color: #444444; line-height: 20px; letter-spacing: -1px; } .image_drop { float: right; width: 75px; height: 120px; background-color:#DDDDDD; margin-left: 8px; }

UC Santa Barbara junior Bree Strenkowski (Oak Park) endured a disappointing cross country season last year.

Searching for an answer to her problems, Strenkowski went back to her roots. She spent the summer training with Oak Park High’s team and her former teammate Courtney Lightfoot, a redshirt freshman at the University of Washington.

Although the season is still young, Strenkowski has already noticed a difference.

Strenkowski finished fifth overall, third among college runners, in her opening meet at the UCSB Lagoon Open in a time of 17 minutes, 51 seconds.

“It was really good to be home this summer and get to train all day,” Strenkowski said. “I was fortunate I did not have any priorities and didn’t have to work. I just focused on a lot of running and had a really solid summer.”

Strenkowski was the Big West Conference Freshman of the Year in 2007 as UCSB won the conference title and reached the NCAA Championships.

But last season the Gauchos finished seventh in the Big West and didn’t reach the NCAA Championships. Strenkowski struggled along with her team.

“I have been thinking about it a lot and really can’t figure out why,” she said. “It might have been just coming back from a stress fracture my freshman year, but I am not really sure what happened.”

UCSB just commenced a week of high-altitude training in Mammoth. The trip gave Strenkowski a chance to bond with the new freshmen and transfers.

“It is fun to get to know everyone and just kind of relax all week,” said Strenkowski, a biology major who aspires for a career in medicine. “What we like to say is we can be professional runners for a week. We can just nap and all we really have to think about is running up there.”

It’s another step toward erasing last year’s memory.

“I don’t think my coach or any other teammates had ever been on a team that went that low,” Strenkowski said. “So I am just looking forward to running with my teammates again and having success with them.”

Football spotlight: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo senior linebacker Carlton Gillespie (St. Bonaventure) was named the Great West Conference Defensive Player of the Week. Gillespie recorded five tackles and a sack in Cal Poly’s 38-19 win over Sacramento State. Cal Poly senior fullback Jon Hall (Thousand Oaks) had 116 all-purpose yards and a touchdown in the win. Hall rushed nine times for 58 yards and caught two passes for 58 yards, including a 52-yard touchdown reception. Sacramento State freshman Sam McCowan (Oxnard) scored his first career touchdown with a 1-yard run in the opener. McCowan rushed six times for 20 yards and returned three kickoffs for 64 yards. … Senior Cory Finnerty (St. Bonaventure) scored Navy’s first touchdown on a 16-yard run in a 32-14 victory over Louisiana Tech. Finnerty rushed three times for 23 yards. … San Jose State junior quarterback Jordan La Secla (Newbury Park) finished 21 of 33 for a career-high 242 yards and one touchdown in a loss to Utah.

News and notes: Cal State Northridge senior midfielder Dylan Riley (Thousand Oaks) was named to the all-tournament team at the Matador Invitational. … University of San Francisco freshman forward Megan Connor (Oaks Christian) notched her first career assist in a 1-1 tie against Cal State Fullerton. … St. Mary’s sophomore Sidney Garza (Buena) recorded an assist off a corner kick in a victory over Southern Methodist. … Freshman outside hitter Rachael Kidder (Moorpark) posted a season-high eight kills for the UCLA women’s volleyball team in a four-set victory over Virginia. … Shane McNulty (Moorpark, Ventura College) will play tennis at Cal Poly Pomona and women’s community college state champion Ashley Litchfield (Ventura College) will play at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego.

Crossing the country: Chico State redshirt freshman Olivia Guadiana (Ventura) finished fifth in the open race at the Asics/UC Irvine Collegiate Cross Country Invitational in 18:55.90. … Sophomore Jake Miller (Oak Park) finished eighth (23:03) to help lead San Francisco State to the men’s team title at the Cal State Monterey Bay Invitational. … San Francisco sophomore Michael Barnes (Ventura) finished 36th (21:02) at the Sacramento State Hornet Jamboree. … USC sophomore Greg Woodburn (Ventura) finished 37th overall (20:45) in the Redlands Cross Country Invitational.