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Columbia's Nathan Matsubara runs at the Cecil Field Summer Classic on Friday. (COURTESY)
Columbia’s boys cross country team placed 16th out of 32 teams at the Cecil Field Summer Classic on Friday at New World Golf in Jacksonville.
Nathan Matsubara led the Tigers with a 45th-place finish out of 358 runners in a time of 19:14. Joshua Thompson was behind him in 60th for CHS at 19:31, followed by teammates Brandyn Pope in 80th (19:55), Timothy Todd in 135th (21:01), Dylan Aspenwell in 176th (21:50), Jacob McLeod in 220th (22:59) and LaWarren Newton in 288th (25:12).
“Nathan Matsubara did very good by finishing in the top 50,” Columbia head coach Lawrence Davis said. “Freshman Timmy Todd did an excellent job for his very first cross country race. I am looking forward to the rest of the season now that they have completed the first race of the 2023 cross-country season. Our team goal is at least five runners under 18 minutes for the 5K or 3.1-mile event. I just need a couple of runners to step up and take on the challenge of the 18-minute barrier. But all in all, this was a good opening meet for the team.”
Columbia’s girls team placed 26th out of 29 teams, with freshman Kendall Todd placing 88th out of 360 runners in a time of 25:57 to lead the way. Behind her were teammates Abigail Candler in 120th (26:42), Laelle Thompson in 159th (27:30), Yulin Chen in 257th (30:42), Kensei Shaw in 264th (30:55), and Melanie Graham in 319th (34:26).
“Freshman Kendall Todd had the best finish for the girls and I am looking forward to her progression throughout the season,” Davis said. “She has to remember to run her race and be patient. Abigail Candler and Laelle will have to focus and continue to get into shape and aim towards getting close to 21 minutes or less. Yulin, Kensi and Melanie got their first taste of competing and I am extremely pleased with their performance. Yulin has come a long way and is steadily improving.”