Tejada and Meza Shine for Owls at SoCal Preview

Costa Mesa, CA (Cross Country) -- Freshman Michael Tejada and Marilyn Meza shone for the Owls this past weekend under a sweltering sun in Costa Mesa. The Owls took part in the annual Southern California Preview at Fairview Park in Costa Mesa, and the two aforementioned athletes cross the finish line first for the Owls men's and women's teams.

Meza continued to do what she does best by leading the Owls through the 5K course. Meza finished 116th out of nearly 200 racers, crossing the line in a time of 23:11. Sophomore Heather Hinostro finished just behind her in 129th place with a time of 23:27, while freshman Katherine Duncan was the third Owl in the chute with a time of 24:11 (143rd).

Tejada meanwhile paced the men. It was the first time this season that Tejada was the first Owl across the finish line as he placed 152nd with a time of 25:37. Fellow freshman Gregory Castro and Wesley Ewart finished 155th and 163rd respectively with times of 25:53 and 26:31.

As a team the women finished 23rd of the 27 competing institutions, while the men were 26th out of 26.

The Owls will be back out on the grind on, this coming Friday when they partake in the Golden West Invitational in hopefully what will be cooler temperatures. The race is set for a 12:00 PM start time at Central Park in Huntington Beach.