Fifth-year Tatiana Cornejo crushed the Big West meet record and the Ag/Ops Course 6k record to secure the women’s individual conference title for Cal Poly Cross Country at the 2026 Big West Championships.
Cal Poly placed third as a team in both the men’s and women’s races, falling just short of capturing its fifth straight sweep of the Big West Championships.
After a dominant regular season, Cornejo put up her best performance when it mattered most. The fifth-year out of Elk Grove, Calif., crossed the finish line with a 6k personal best time of 18:55.4 to take the title.
Not only did Cornejo beat her own personal best by over 20 seconds, but she also shattered the Big West meet record by over 17 seconds and set a new 6k course record. The previous Big West meet record was held by a former Mustang, Laura Hollander, at 19:12.6 set in 2012.
Cornejo is the fifth different Mustang to take the Big West women’s individual title and the first since Schuyler Gooley in 2024.
The Cal Poly women didn’t stop there as four other Mustangs also ran 6k personal bests at the meet. Freshmen Isabella Ramirez and Sydney Middleton placed 17th and 18th, respectively, as Cal Poly’s second- and third-highest finishers. Right behind them were senior Lianna Guerra, who placed 20th, and freshman Brenna Mannion, who placed 21st.
Junior Nikki Bridges finished 28th, and senior Sydney Sundgren closed out in 47th. As a team, the women finished with 77 points and a spot on the podium.
Senior Dheeraj Gurusamy led the Cal Poly men with a time of 23:49.4 to capture 13th place. Freshman Kyle Jakary placed 17th (23:55.6), followed by freshman Andres Lomeli (23:59.4) finishing 19th. Both freshmen ran 8k personal bests en route to top three performances for the Mustangs.
Sophomores J.R. Lesher and Miles Cook finished 20th and 22nd while seniors Ethan Miller and Rory Castimanes placed 29th and 36th, respectively. To round out the competition for Cal Poly, junior Devin Ibarra finished 62nd.
The Cal Poly men finished third with 99 points, behind second-place Utah Valley and champions CBU.
Cal Poly Cross Country isn’t done yet as the team looks ahead to the NCAA West Regional meet on Friday, Nov. 13, at Arcade Creek Cross Country Course in Sacramento.