Running Club Makes Strong Showing at Home Run

5K Wins Team Competition; 10K Takes 2nd

STANFORD, CALIF. - The Stanford Running Club took away two team trophies and a handful of individual medals at the Stanford Habitat For Humanity Home Run on Sunday morning. Splitting its squad between the 5-kilometer and 10-kilometer races, the Club delivered a strong performance in its first major competitive event of the season.

Jonathan Chu finished second overall to lead the 10K squad with a finishing time of 36:38. Strong runs by Calvin Chu (37:35, 4th) and Robert Conroy (38:17, 5th) gave the Running Club three of the top five finishers in the 264-participant field. Sonja Swenson (45:10, 39th) and Ishan Nath (46:20, 55th) rounded out the Club's top five finishers, an effort that resulted in a 2nd-place finish, only 49 seconds behind the winning Stanford Triathlon team.

In the 5K, Jose Vieitez paced the Club with an impressive 17:48, good enough for second place overall. Not far behind were Dan Lopez (17:57, 5th) and David Tobin (18:19, 7th). Aaron Bronzan (19:16, 13th) and James Xie (19:33, 16th) followed, giving the Running Club a team time of 1:32:53, winning the Club an easy first-place finish. Patrick Leahy and James Rimbakusumo completed the seven-runner team.

Running Club members also took home several individual honors on Sunday. Karen Acevedo's 22:07 finish time in the 5K earned her the first place medal for females aged 18 and under. Vieitez and Lopez each took home hardware for their 1st and 2nd place respective finishes in the male 19-29 category. In the 10K, Conroy won first in his division, Jonathan Chu was 2nd for males 19-29, and Swenson earned a 3rd-place medal in the women's 18-and-under age group.

Running Club members continue to look forward to running, even as final exams, shorter days, and brisker weather approach. For runners who don't run with the Club every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 4:15 p.m., the Club's website features interactive maps of the Stanford area with a number of different routes of various distances runners can enjoy.