Scott Bauhs posted the best time in the nation in Division II for the 5,000-meter race Sunday at the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational. He rewrote the Chico State record book in the process.
Stanford University hosted the invitational where the sophomore turned in a time of 13 minutes, 40.63 seconds, breaking the previous Chico State record of 14:06 set by Charlie Serrano last year.
Bauhs placed 11th overall with his time in the first heat of the event. The meet featured professional and top Division I athletes, said Gary Towne, head cross country coach.
He could tell Bauhs was going to break the record when the race began, he said.
"The pace he was running at was so much faster than the school record pace," Towne said.
Bauhs qualifies for the U.S. championship in June with his time and is a provisional qualifier for the NCAA championships on May 24, Towne said.
It was obvious in his training and past performances that Bauhs could break the record, Towne said.
Five other members of the team also provisionally qualified for the Division II NCAA championship.
"It was a pretty exciting night of track," Towne said.
Kellie Caparula can be reached at kcaparula@theorion.com
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