UC IRVINE NOTEBOOK : He’s No Fifth Wheel to Cross-Country Team

The way UC Irvine cross-country Coach Vince O’Boyle has it figured, a good fifth man is hard to find. A front-runner is easy to spot. After all, he’s the guy leading the race, grabbing headlines and turning recruiters’ heads.

Good second, third and fourth runners are generally nipping at the leaders’ heels, and easy to uncover, too.

But a steady, reliable No. 5 runner is a puzzle for many college coaches, who couldn’t win conference or national championships without one.

Lucky for O’Boyle, he found David Hesseltine one day in 1988.

At Upland High School, Hesseltine had personal bests of 9 minutes 30 seconds for the 3,200 meters and 15:30 for the three-mile cross-country course at Mt. San Antonio College. He was a good runner, hoping to improve and contribute. As it turned out, he is exactly the type of runner O’Boyle hopes to find every year when he goes recruiting.

Nearing the end of his fourth season at Irvine, Hesseltine has become a key figure for the team, pushing the Anteaters to their third consecutive Big West Conference championship Nov. 2 at New Mexico State.

He finished the 8,000-meter course in 25:54.8, good for 10th place, and the fifth Anteater to cross the finish line.

“The thing is, we always know we have consistency with (Hesseltine),” O’Boyle said. “He’s steady . . . always going to give a good effort. You can sit back and count on it.

“You wish you had more guys like him. You can always find a fast guy to run up front. Finding the guys with good discipline, who are the backbone of your team, is tough.”

Although, Hesseltine isn’t likely to run with the leaders at the NCAA Region 8 championships Saturday at Woodward Park in Fresno, he’s a key to the Anteaters advancing to the NCAA championships Nov. 25 at Tucson, Ariz.

And if Irvine doesn’t advance--and it’s a long shot to be one of the two teams that will go to Tucson--that’s OK with Hesseltine, who was happy to do what he could to help the Anteaters win those conference titles.

“Initially, my goal was to get on the team and make the top seven,” said Hesseltine, who has improved every season at Irvine. “I’m a realist.”

As a freshman, Hesseltine struggled to reach a consistent level of running.

“I’d have good and bad days,” he said. “I’d be really encouraged by my workouts, then on race day I’d find I’d used it all up.”

Without an overwhelming favorite up front the past two seasons, O’Boyle has taught the team to run as a pack. And that’s helped Hesseltine run closer to the leaders.

O’Boyle scheduled a weekly, six- to nine-mile workout designed to keep the entire team running together at a good pace, without killing themselves or turning the run into an easy jog.

“We really wanted (a pack) at the conference meet,” Hesseltine said. “We set out to have a team game plan. Usually, that hasn’t been the case. (But) we were really controlling the pace of the race.”

As a result, he finished less than a minute behind Aaron Masscorro, Irvine’s No. 1 runner and second overall in 25:12.8.

“Winning the conference is always a big goal at the beginning of the year,” Hesseltine said. “It’s been a consistent goal, regardless of whether we’re on a national level or not.”

Hesseltine is scheduled to graduate with a degree in social ecology in June, and that’s bad news for O’Boyle, who will have to unearth another dependable fifth man before the next cross-country season begins.

“I think we can replace a No. 1 or 2 runner, but it’s hard to find someone with the work ethic of a David Hesseltine,” O’Boyle said.

Steve Scott, a former Irvine distance runner of some renown, tipped O’Boyle to Hesseltine. Both runners attended Upland High and ran for Coach Bob Loney, though many years apart.

“My parents know (Scott’s) parents,” Hesseltine said. “My mom and his mom are on the same bowling league team together.

“We had the same high school coach, so I used to hear all the inspirational stories about him.”

Last add cross-country: The women’s team, ranked No. 11 nationally, expects Traci Goodrich to return for Saturday’s regional meet. Goodrich, a sophomore who was the Anteaters’ top runner in three of four regular-season meets, missed the Big West championships with a sprained left knee.

Without Goodrich, the Anteaters won their third consecutive team championship, and Rayna Cervantes, a junior, was the individual champion.

Last year, the women’s team finished second in the regional meet and fourth at the NCAA championships.

Upon further review: After watching the videotape of the Anteaters’ 100-92 overtime victory over the Lafayette Hustlers Saturday, men’s basketball Coach Rod Baker revised his initial opinion of the team’s performance.

“Our team isn’t that bad, I’ve come to find out in the last few days,” Baker said.

However, he wasn’t particularly pleased with the Anteaters’ defense against the Hustlers, a team of former college and pro standouts.

“I came to town preaching defense and we give up 92 points against guys who used to drive me to kindergarten,” said Baker, who yelled himself hoarse Saturday.

“The last three years (as an assistant at Seton Hall) I never got to say anything on the bench,” he said. “By halftime this (voice) was gone.”

Anteater Note

The second-ranked water polo team, which moved into first place in the Big West with a 9-8 victory over Pepperdine Sunday, ends the regular season with three consecutive road games. Irvine (18-6, 6-1 in conference) plays at Fresno State on Saturday, at the University of the Pacific on Sunday and at UC Santa Barbara on Nov. 23. The NCAA playoffs begin Nov. 29 at Belmont Plaza Pool in Long Beach.