Humboldt State University Athletics

ARCATA — One final tuneup remains before the beginning of championship season, and the Lumberjacks will take advantage of that occasion when they travel to the Bay Area for Friday's San Francisco State Invitational. First up is the women's 6K at 4 p.m., followed by the men's 8K at 4:45 p.m.  Both races will be  held in Golden Gate Park, site of the Nov. 7 NCAA Division II West Region Championships.

Meet Notes
This meet is being held for the fifth consecutive season. Last year's team championships were claimed by Academy of Art, on the men's side, and St. Thomas of Minnesota, in the women's competition. …Last year's meet also included representatives from Chico State, Sacramento State, San Jose State, CS Monterey Bay and Creighton University. …Eight California Collegiate Athletic Association schools will send runners to this year's event, with two programs from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and one from the Pacific West Conference also planning to tour the regional course.

Course Notes
Golden Gate Park is home to the course that will also be used for the 2009 NCAA DII West Region Championships. For those familiar with the famous park, race start and finish is in Speedway Meadow. The first 1.85K features a loop around the polo field and up through the woods before returning to the meadow. Each course will then consist of 2K loops through Speedway Meadow, Lindley Meadow, and the surrounding dirt trails. To complete the desired distance, a final 150m will lead the runners to the finish line in Speedway Meadow. The course consists of rolling terrain along grass fields and dirt trails.

Lumberjack Men's Notes
Drew Sylvester has emerged from a tight pack of Jacks as HSU's No. 1 runner. The sophomore from Oakland has been the Jacks' top finisher in all three races he's competed. "Drew has been Mr. Consistency," HSU head coach Sandy Moran said. "He knows how to race, and has a mental toughness that everyone else can learn from. He could be our No. 1 all year. He's a gamer."…Ten runners will travel this week, the last chance to make a statement prior to the CCCA and West Region meets. Listed on the entries, along with Sylvester, are Nicholas Arguelles, Alex Caballero, Hunter Daniel, Luis Galicia, Robert Gustas, Abel Gutierrez, Austin Huff, Nick LaPlant and Eric Malain. …Arguelles is eligible for the first time this season, and should have an immediate impact. The junior transferred in this fall from the University of New Mexico.

Lumberjack Women's Notes
Megan Rolland has positioned herself as a potential all-region runner by running among the leaders. Her performance at the Stanford Invitational where she was among the top Division II finishers two weeks ago further indicated that potential. "It's exciting to watch (Rolland) improve," Moran said. "She hasn't reached her full potential yet. She's fit, she just needs to get more speed."…HSU's young and talented crew racing at San Francisco this weekend includes two seniors, two juniors and four freshmen. Amanda Garcia is the other senior, along with Rolland, while Tess Dahlgren and Irene Graham are Humboldt's junior. Bridget Berg, Samantha Collins, Chelsea Schaefer and Jackelyn Valladares are all freshmen. …Berg has been struggling with shin problems, and may be held out this week to allow for an additional week's break from racing. …

Moran's Mantra
''It changes every week as to who is where in our men's pack. I'm just looking for less of a gap from 1 to 6. … They're fired up and ready to go. Having Nico (Arguelles) in the mix helps a lot. It's a good litmus test." …We ran the regional course on our way to Stanford, and now we'll get a chance to race it. " …. "We'll see improvement from our middle of the pack women this week. Irene (Graham) had blisters that slowed her at Stanford, and Chelsea Schaefer is going to come on strong in the next few meets."