COLLEGE UPDATE:

GLENDALE — The following are updates on area athletes at the collegiate level.

Eric Kleinsasser (Crescenta Valley High, 2007) Occidental College cross-country sophomore: The former Falcons All-Area runner continues to turn heads with the Tigers, as he claimed third place overall on Oct. 3 at the West Region Preview Meet at Pomona-Pitzer.

Kleinsasser’s time of 25 minutes 40.10 seconds bolstered his team’s third-place finish.

The race was won by UC Irvine, with Irvine’s Rex Nelson taking first in 25:32.37.

Kleinsasser finished just in front of another Irvine runner, his former Falcons teammate, Brett Matejka, who finished fourth overall in 25:45.49, which was second on Irvine.

In the women’s race, another Crescenta Valley grad, Shelby Pock, took fifth overall in 23:19.80. Irvine also won the women’s race.

Kleinsasser and Occidental will return to action Saturday at La Mirada Park in the SCIAC Multi-Dual Meet.

Jesse Ayers (Glendale Community College, 2006) Dakota Wesleyan football senior: Ayers turned in a stellar performance on Saturday, propelling his team to a 42-32 Great Plains Athletic Conference win against Doane College.

The former Vaquero hauled in nine catches for 99 yards and a 26-yard touchdown catch on the day. The score came with 42 seconds left to salt away the win, which improved Dakota Wesleyan to 2-4 overall and in conference.

Next up is a home game against Brian Cliff University.

Ayers has caught 31 balls for 462 yards, both second-best on the team. His four touchdown grabs and 14.9 yards per catch are best on the squad.

Darryl Carter (St. Francis High, 2008) Cal Lutheran University football sophomore: During Cal Lutheran’s blowout 48-14 win against Pomona-Pitzer on Saturday, Carter got his first touchdown of the season on a one-yard plunge in the fourth quarter. He finished the game with 14 yards in four carries.

Carter, a former All-Area pick with the Golden Knights as a defensive tackle and fullback, has a modest six carries for 19 yards on the season, having played in three of his team’s four games on the year.

A transfer from Pasadena City College, Carter is joined on the team by former St. Francis teammate Rian Younker. Younker, a freshman defensive lineman, led Cal Lutheran in Saturday’s game with seven tackles, including one for a loss.

The 3-1 Kingsmen, who are 2-0 in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, face off in another SCIAC game against Claremont-Mudd Scripps on Saturday at home, searching for their third straight victory.

Sam Orlandini (Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, 2008) Cal State Northridge women’s volleyball sophomore: Orlandini, a former two-time All-Area Player of the Year, turned in a double-double in aiding the Matadors’ 18-25, 25-17, 25-20, 25-20 win against UC Riverside on Saturday.

It was the first Big West Conference win of the season for the Matadors (5-13, 1-4 in conference), who also stopped a five-match losing streak in the process.

Orlandini posted 24 assists and 10 digs in the match.

For the season, one in which she’s played in all 18 matches and 72 sets, Orlandini, the squad’s starting setter, leads the team with 591 assists, averaging 8.21 per set.

She’s third on the team with 144 digs and has also chipped in 23 kills and 20 blocks.

Orlandini and Co. head back to action on Friday at Cal State Fullerton.