Fresno State Athletics
Cross Country Heads to Training Camp
8/21/2001 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Aug. 21, 2001
FRESNO, Calif. - WATERMELON RUN Fresno State cross country will unofficially open the 2001 season with the 36th annual Watermelon Run. The event occurs Saturday, September 1 on the Fresno State campus near Cedar and Barstow, next to the softball field. Along with the Bulldog runners, the general public is invited to participate in three races. The races include a two and four mile run and the "Vineyard Mile". Registration begins at 8:00 am. The entry fee to run is $5.00. Race times are as follows: four mile run at 8:30, two mile run at 9:15 and "Vineyard Mile" at 9:45 am. Last years top finishers on the men's team were junior Josh Roddy (Manteca, Calif.), taking first with a time of 29:49, and junior Moses Avila (Reedley, Calif.), placing second with a time of 31:58 in the six mile run. Top finishers on the women's team were senior Jennifer Smith (Lake of the Pines, Calif.), placing 35th with a time of 11:56, and senior Rachel Bauer (Clovis, Calif.), placing 38th with a time of 12:36 in the two mile run.
CROSS COUNTRY AT TRAINING CAMP The men's and women's cross country teams left Monday morning for their annual training camp. The six-day camp is held in Shaver Lake, Calif., where head coaches Shannon Lieder and Joe Gonzales will direct a rigorous camp. This is the first practice for the cross country teams, whose season season begins Saturday, September 1. Approximately 40 cross country runners went on the trip, 20 men and 20 women.
MEN'S HEAD COACH Joe Gonzales enters his second year as head coach of the men's cross country team. Gonzales, who graduated from Fresno State in 1990, saw immediate success in his first year as he lead the team to a third place finish at the WAC Championships. This season, equipped with a core of top returning runners, he looks to surpass SMU and UTEP to claim the WAC title. Aside from coaching the men's cross country team, Gonzales is an assistant coach on the Fresno State track and field staff, specializing in distance running. Prior to coming to Fresno State, Gonzales coached at Exeter High School for 10 years. Gonzales and his wife, Sheila, have two daughters, Jennie and Kristie.
WOMEN'S HEAD COACH Shannon Lieder enters her second year as head coach of the women's cross country team. She also serves as an assistant coach on the track and field staff. Lieder will coach a team with many newcomers this year, as over half the team are freshmen. A prominate goal for the 2001 season is to place in the Top-3 at the WAC Championships. Lieder was an outstanding student-athlete at Fresno State from 1989-92. She set track records that still hold today, including the 800 meter (2:07:03) and 1,500 meter (4:24:68). Lieder also ranks ninth on the Fresno State women's all-time 5,000 meters list in cross country. Lieder has a master's degree in kinesiology and was a menber of the Strategic Planning Committee is which she worked closely with Fresno State President, Dr. John Welty, regarding Title IX issues.
