On a crisp Saturday morning, nearly 600 runners and walkers from Cal Poly Pomona and the community hit the streets for the “The Heart of a Hero: Matt’s Run 5K,” raising more than $10,000 for scholarships.
With many wearing Matt’s Run-themed capes or superhero costumes, runners and walkers took off Oct. 17 at 8 a.m. to traverse the scenic campus and cross the finish line at the W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center.
Cal Poly Pomona junior Austin Van Biezen took first place with a time of 16:20.916, followed by sophomore Darian Ignatius (17:34.183) and 2012 alumnus Clark Selters (17:50.853), all in the 19-29 age category.
Graduate student Jennifer McCarthy was the top female finisher with a time of 22:04.420, followed by 2008 alumna Whitney Tawney (22:27.240) and Xochitl Robles (22:41.776). McCarthy raced in the 19-29 age grouping, Whitney in the 30-39 bracket and Robles in the 13-18 category.
The top finishers in each age category received Matt’s Run medals and pumpkins grown by Cal Poly Pomona.
The race also featured 11 groups and organizations vying for the Myers Cup, given to the groups exhibiting the most enthusiasm and spirit on race day. The winning team will be announced later this year.
Since Matt’s Run began in 2006, the Matthew Myers Scholarship Fund Endowment has awarded approximately 60 scholarships. This year’s $1,000 scholarships were awarded to:
- Ginger Barba, senior majoring in finance, real estate and law;
- Kevin Gasio, senior, music;
- Noemi Guerrero, junior, mechanical engineering;
- Seok Hyua Lee, sophomore, finance real estate and law;
- Gwendy Lumpkin, senior, computer information systems;
- Steven Ngo, senior, finance real estate and law;
- Gerrardo Rosales, senior, landscape architecture;
- Cydnee Serrano, senior, finance real estate and law;
- Jessica Shahad, sophomore, civil engineering;
- Joanna Stanley, senior, hospitality management.
Scholarship requirements include a devotion to community involvement and a 3.0 GPA for Cal Poly Pomona freshmen or a 2.75 GPA for continuing students.
The race is a tribute to Matthew Myers, a communications student at Cal Poly Pomona who died in 2005. After his death, his parents, Kevin and Chris Myers; and sister, Jenna Myers, a 2011 alumna, worked with the university to create a scholarship that would honor his passion to serve others and reflect his love of running.