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 OCC Gets Back on Top and ARC Defends Title at State

11/17/12

All photos courtesy of Dean Lofgren

The women's field hits the road just after the start.

For the entire 2012 cross country season, teams made their way along the treacherous journey of invitationals to prepare for the final test, the State Meet competition.  There were coaches who started their squads out fast and tried to maintain.  There were the veteran coaches who moved their teams along with quiet confidence as they steadily improved. There were some who used various training methods, some proven, some unorthodox.  There were even coaches who seemed to have to reassure themselves of their stature by leading their teams in cheers throughout the season, with one even claiming every course to be their house.  Yet, it became evident as one looked at the final results of both state meet races, experience matters.

The women's lead pack near the 1 mile mark.

On a day that saw showers gently dampen the Woodward Park course, the best the north and south had to offer gathered near the starting line for this year’s State Cross Country Championships.  Traditional powers led by coaches who had been there many times before, seemed to approach the meet with a sense of calm assertiveness and that experience would prevail this day as Marco Ochoa of Orange Coast and Rick Anderson would lead their teams to titles.

The women's field winds through the dirt trails.

In the women’s competition, the race got off to a rocky beginning, as for the first time in recent memory, the start had to be recalled due to a fallen athlete.  After re-assembling at the starting line, the gun was fired again and the ladies took off with a roar.

Katie Castro pulls away from the pack.

As they passed the first mile marker, the noticeable orange uniforms of OCC could be seen as they occupied many of the top 20 spots.  Another recognizable contingent was De Anza, who had the lead runner in Katie Castro. 

Grace Zamudio led all Glendale runners.

As the runners headed into the second mile marker, Castro began to pull away, but she was steadily pursued by Santa Barbara’s Cecelia Instebo.  Orange Coast continued to hold on to many of the top spots, however, Glendale, led by Grace Zamudio and Moorpark led by Megan McNally and Karla Vernola, were beginning to make big moves as they headed into the final stretch.

Cecilia Instebo leads AVC's Emma Ramirez into the finish.

Castro kept pulling away as she took the top spot with a time of 17:44.  Instebo would hold onto 2^nd place.  As more runners approached the chute, it looked to be Orange Coast’s day. However, Moorpark and Glendale were still in the hunt.

Megan McNally finishes in the top five.

Yet, they would not have enough as OCC placed five runners in the top 25 to give them a convincing victory.  Glendale, would muster enough to hold onto the second place spot and Moorpark, behind their front runners took third overall.  De Anza and Mt. SAC would round out the top five.

A huge field just before the 1 mile mark.

Before the men’s race, it would be easy to reflect on what an unusual year it has been.  In the early part of this season, it looked too many that this would be a race between two squads, the number one ranked southern team, Cerritos and the defending champions, American River.  Yet, after the Southern California Championships, that viewpoint began to change.  San Bernardino Valley took home the title trophy at that event, and even though Cerritos had finished second overall, it looked as if the rest of the So Cal had made up significant ground.  

A pack of El Camino runners by the 1 mile mark.

American River would eventually walk away with the championship trophy, defending their title.  However, it was a close affair, as ARC would need great performances, including an individual title by Matt Airola, to take the blue ribbon. 

The lead pack gets ready to head towards the 3rd mile marker.

When the gun went off, the field roared over the wet grass as every runner tried to establish position.  Unlike races past, where often times there was one runner who would go straight to the front and then the rest of the field will follow, this race, looked to be a tactical affair as a huge throng passed through the 1 mile mark together.  Instantly, one could see the signature red and white striped uniforms of the ARC contingent there, along with many of the expected players. 

Two Riverside runners work together as they try to better their team's standing.

As the race continued, Glendale had a large pack that was moving up, Orange Coast also had a couple of runners in the mix led by Luis Morales, and Riverside had two front runners in John Guzman and Luis Gutierrez.  Cerritos also had two athletes up front, Munir Kahssay and Brandon Taylor, but a noticeable gap had formed in their ranks.

Matt Airola kicks it in to take the individual title.

The race started to move into its final stages.   ARC’s Matt Airola began to make a move as they headed into the 3 mile mark.  Yet, there was still a large pack that was huddled together that included Omar Cortes of Trade Tech, Kyle Fisk of Saddleback, as well as many of the other favorites, including Kahssay, Taylor, Guzman, Benjamin Barragan of SBVC and Steven Martinez of San Diego Mesa.

Trade Tech's Omar Cortes holds off John Guzman and Luis Morales.

It began to become more noticeable that ARC was getting ready to finish strong.  Yet, another team, Glendale, was also looking very good as they had at least four runners in the top twenty.  Riverside, not to be outdone by its competitors, also started to pick up the pace, as Guzman and Gutierrez led their ranks by taking over some of the top spots.  Also getting involved was the Orange Coast squad who moved more runners into the top thirty. 

Kyler Fisk takes a top 5 spot.

As they headed into the final 800 meters, Taylor and Kahssay would fade out of the lead group, as Cerritos moved out of contention and would no longer be a factor.  The final charge would see Airola take the individual title.  He would lead his fellow teammates who would go on to occupy 4 places in the top 25.  Glendale made a valiant charge, equaling the same number of athletes in the top 25, but it was not quite enough as, American River would defend its title.  Glendale placed 2^nd.  Orange Coast, behind the 4^th place finish of Luis Morales, would take 3^rd.  Riverside would take 4^th and San Bernardino Valley would hold on to the 5^th place spot.

A trio of Glendale runners push them to a 2nd place finish.

Results

OCC Women & SBVC Men Show They are Ready for State

All photos, courtesy of Dean Lofgren

11/3/12

The women's field starts to take shape.

The Orange Coast women and the San Bernardino Valley men showed that they are making their typical adjustments and will be ready to take on all challengers in two weeks at the State College Championships as both teams walked away with Southern California Championships yesterday at Fairview Park in Costa Mesa.

Grace Zamudio pulls away from her competition.

In the women's competition, the Lady Pirates blistered the rest of the competition as all five of their scoring runners finished in the top 15, giving them an insurmountable lead winning the competition over their nearest rival, Glendale by 53 points.

Santa Barbara's Cecilia Instebo powers through the race.

The race shaped up pretty quickly as by the first mile it was obvious OCC came ready to compete.  Glendale also showed well as their top runner, Garce Zamudio, took charge and ran away from the rest of the field, defeating the runner-up, Cecilia Instebo of Santa Barbara by 18 seconds.  Moorpark's Megan McNally took 3rd.

The Lady Pirates pose with their championship trophy.

However, OCC was not going to be denied.  Led by Karen Silvas 6th place finish, the Lady Pirates came pouring in and it was obvious that no one would be close to them this day.

The men's race flies from the start.

In the men's competition, it would only be a surprise to those who have not followed CCC cross country very long.  San Bernardino Valley, had been flying under the radar most of the year, but as always, when it counted most, they delivered.

Mesa's Martinez and RCC's Gutierrez battle.

As the race progressed, two Cerritos runners, Munir Kahssay and Brandon Taylor were running 1-2, with LA Trade Tech's Omar Cortes trailing just behind.  Also in contention for those top spots was Riverside runner, John Guzman and San Diego Mesa's Steven Martinez.

However, if one was paying close attention, you could see the signature uniforms of a pack of San Bernardino runners steadily moving up.  It was a typical sight for those who have witnessed championship competition for the last decade.

Kahssay (left) and Cortes start to make their way to the finish.

As the runners approached the last 200 meters, Taylor had faded, but Omar Cortes had moved up to challenge Kahssay and was able to outkick the Cerritos runner into the finish.  RCC's Guzman finished third.

SBVC celebrates their victory.

The race was not without it's controversy however.  Cerritos, who had been the number one ranked Southern Cal team for weeks seemed to falter, although, they were still in contention.  Yet, there was controversy in the chute when two Cerritos runners were being looked at for decorum violations that happened in the finishing chute.  In the end, one of the Cerritos runners was reinstated, however, the other was not, causing confusion and a delay in the results.

When the final results were posted, SBVC was your winner with Cerritos 2nd and and Riverside 3rd.

Results    Team and Individual Qualifiers

OCC Women & Riverside Men Take Titles

The Orange Coast women and the Riverside men took home conference championship titles this past weekend as both teams start to ramp it up as they head into the Southern California Championships.

The OCC women dominated the competition, nearly delivering a perfect score, with a 16 point performance.  Leane Allen led a 1-4 performance by the Lady Pirates with only Fullerton's Maegan Garritson breaking up the onslaught.  Fullerton, placed 2nd with Santiago Canyon placing 3rd.

Orange Coast and RCC duke it out.  (photo, courtesy of Jim McCarron)

On the men's side, the competition wa nearly as one sided.  The Riverside men placed 4 in the top 5, with Kyler Fisk of Saddleback, who placed 2nd, being the only non-Tiger to break it up.  RCC scored only 26 points, which was enough to beat the runner-up team, OCC, who scored 40.

Results

The SD Mesa Men and Women Win 

The women take off.  (photo, courtesy of Thom Hunt)

The San Diego Women and Men took home championship titles at the Pacific Coast Athletic Conference Championships held this past weekend.  Both teams were able to hold off their competition in the contest that was hosted by Palomar.

The SD Mesa women won the championship.  (photo, courtesy of Rene Ross)

On the women's side it was a fierce competition.  Paige Hughes of Cuyamaca dominated the women's individual competition as she went on to the victory, winning the race by nearly a minute over her closest competition, Katie Coleman of San Diego Mesa.  However, it was the Mesa women that were able to stack enough runners into the top finishing spots to take the victory.  With 3 runners in the top ten, it was enough to hold off the Palomar squad to defeat them by a 12 point margin 52-64.

Martinez on his way to victory.  (photo, courtesy of Thom Hunt)

On the men's side, San Diego Mesa's  Steven Martinez and Albert Gamez led a 1-2 finish that gave them the edge for the rest of the competition.  Cuyamaca's Lee McCallister placed 3rd as his team made every effort to close the gap.  In the end, it was not quite enough as Mesa went on to the victory with Cuyamaca placing 2nd by a score of 30-46.

Results

AVC Women & SBVC Men Win Titles

By Mark Covert

10/26/12

The Antelope Valley women's team.  (photo, courtesy of Mark Covert)

Both Antelope Valley women and SBVC men easily defended their Foothill Conference championships Tuesday at Victor Valley College.

In the women's competition, Emma Ramirez pulled away from SBVC Jazmin Romero to win her 2nd Conference championship as AVC put 5 in the top 10 to take the women's title.

The San Bernardino Valley championship team.  (photo, courtesy of Mark Covert)

For the men Joseph Aguilar moved away early to win the individual championship as SBVC easily won by taking the top 11 spots.

Results - Men's Ind.     Men's Team    Women's Ind.    Women's Team

Cerritos Men & Women Win

The women's field takes off from the start.  (photo, courtesy of Dean Lofgren)

The Cerritos men and women took home conference titles at the SCC Championships held at Griffith Park this past Friday.  On a blustery day, the competition was set and ready to go in the always tough SCC.

The women's competition proved to be a very close affair.  Karina Sanchez of Cerritos was able to pull away from the competition to take the individual title.  However, LA Trade Tech took the next two spots, led by Evelyn De La Cruz.  However, Cerritos, with three women in the top ten was able to hold on to the victory, defeating Trade Tech by 9 points.  Mt. SAC placed 3rd.

The men's field starts to take shape.  (photo, courtesy of Dean Lofgren)

In the men's competition, it was just as tight, as the LA Trade Tech closed the gap on Cerritos.  Sophomore, Munir Kahssay, pulled away from rest of the field with his teammate, sophomore Brandon Taylor taking 2nd.  However, Trade Tech was able to take the next two spots, led by Juan Rodriguez.  In the end, Cerritos was able to hold on to a 10 point margin of victory to take the team title.  Mt. SAC placed 3rd.

Results

OCC Women & RCC Men Take Santa Barbara

10/12/12

Photos, courtesy of Scott Fickerson

Cecilia Instebo powers her way over the beach.

On a clear breezy day on Leadbetter Beach in beautiful Santa Barbara, a total of 17 teams toed the sandy beach starting line as they prepared for the start of the Santa Barbara Invitational.

The women's race had some of the top teams in Southern California represented, including the #1 ranked Orange Coast squad and the always dangerous Glendale squad.  Also represented would be the host team of Santa Barbara, who has been steadily moving up the rankings board.

When the gun went off, it was a sea of maroon and orange as Glendale and OCC moved to the front to take their spots at the head of the pack.  Glendale's Grace Zamudio, who has been having a great season thus far, quickly took the lead, and by the 2nd mile had a commanding advantage over her next nearest rival, Cecilia Instebo of Santa Barbara.  However, as Zamudio took control up front, the pack behind her was being filled with orange jerseys, as OCC started to establish itself as the team to beat. 

Orange Coast would remain in control as they took 6 of the top 15 spots to win the event 31-40 over Glendale.  This pack of OCC runners was led by Leanne Allen who charged into the chute in 3rd place with her teammates finishing 4th and 5th respectively.  Antelope Valley, was able to hold off host school, Santa Barbara, for the third team spot.

The men react to the starting gun on Leadbetter Beach.

In the men's race, people were looking at Riverside and Glendale to duke it out for the top honors.  Riverside, who seems to be improving every week, showed no signs of slowing down as they finished 2nd and 3rd behind Sequoias top runner, Daniel Guerrero, who won the event.  Luis Gutierrez and John Guzman placed 2nd and 3rd to lead the Tigers.  RCC placed 4 runners in the top 15 to take the top team honors.

The men's field turn to head up the hill to bluff.

There was a surprise though in the men's event, as the Orange Coast began to move up throughout the race and were able to overtake Glendale.  The Pirates were led by Weston Hall's 7th place finish.  Glendale placed 3rd in the team standings.

Eventual winner, Daniel Guerrero extends his lead.

Results

Cerritos Men & Women win at Mt. SAC

10/12/12

The Cerritos men's and women's teams geared up for their conference championships by taking both titles at the Mt. SAC Invitational, held on the historic course this past Friday.

In the women's race, Moorpark's Megan McNally took home the individual title, defeating Hartnell's Victoria Alcala.  In the team competition, Cerritos was able to place 5 runners in the top 15, led by Karina Sanchez, to take home the top honors.  Host school, Mt. SAC, placed 2nd while Moorpark was able to take third.

Other notable performances were turned in by American River's Victoria Alcala who placed third.

In the men's competition, Cerritos was able to defeat a pesky Hartnell team.  Joshua Espinoza, from Glendale College in Arizona took the top honors with Saddleback's Kyler Fisk taking 2nd.

Cerritos was able to place 4th, 5th and 6th, led by Jonathan Bazinet, to help secure the victory.  Other notable performances were turned in by Benajamin Barragan of San Bernardino Valley.

Results

SD Mesa Men Win at San Diego Invitational

10/5/12

All photos, courtesy of John Goldman

Teams fly from the start at the San Diego Invitational.

On a picture perfect day at the Mission Bay course in San Diego, a home team brought home the title.  The course was in beautiful shape and the runners seemed to be excited that they were running the same course that has been the site of so many championships events, including the National Cross Country Championships.

The lead pack strings out along the water.

The San Diego Mesa team, which has been showing improvement all year, was able to hold off a pesky and resurgent Long Beach City College team to take home the team title.

Mesa's lead pack starts to establish itself.

In the first mile, East LA and San Diego Mesa runners moved to the front.  The pack included ELAC's Kristoffer Chacon and Gonzalo Ceja.  Also in the pack, was SD Mesa's Steven Martinez and Carlos Bojorquez. 

A group including ELAC and LBCC runners move down a hill.

As the race continued, Martinez was able to begin to pull away.  As some runners fell back, the Long Beach team started to move up.  Michael Delgado of LBCC fought hard with Bojorquez while Chacon was able to maintain his position in 4th.  The battle for 5th place became fierce as LBCC's Pedro Cruz fought hard again Mesa's Albert Gamez.

Martinez went on to the easy victory, while teammate Bojorquez placed 2nd holding off Delgado.  Cruz, in a final kick, was able to take the 5th place spot.

In the final team results, SD Mesa won by a margin of 24 to 54 over Long Beach, with East LA finishing 3rd with a total of 69 points.

The women move from the start.

The women's race turned out to be a great day for East LA as they took home the team title with a convincing victory.  They defeated home team, San Diego Mesa who placed 2nd.

Results-    Men's Team     Men's Ind.     Women's Team     Women's Ind.

Mt. SAC women SBVC Men get Blue Ribbons at Brubaker

10/5/12

All photos, courtesy of Dean Lofgren

The Mt. SAC women, led by Miriam Jiminez storm to the front.

The Mt. SAC women won in convincing fashion while the San Bernardino men were able to squeak out a victory at the Brubaker Invitational which was held this past Friday and Irvine Park.

In the women’s competition, Mt. SAC’s Miriam Jiminez took the individual title, while the Lady Mounties place four women in the top ten to easily take down the rest of the competition.  Jiminez was able to pull away from Cuyamaca’s Paige Hughes, who finished just 3 seconds back in a 19:04 to 19:07 finish.  Pasadena placed 2^nd in the team competition with Palomar taking the third place spot.

The men's lead pack at the beginning of the race.

Other notable performances were turned in by San Bernardino’s Jazmin Romero and Pasadena’s Diane Lombardi who took 4^th overall.

The men’s competition was much tighter and made more interesting by a wrong turn that sent a good part of the field over a hundred yards in the wrong direction.  Once the lead pack of the field realized the error, they turned around to resume the race and started to re-establish themselves as the force in the race. 

Luis Gutierrez (left) with teammate John Guzman go on to a 1-2 finish.

The race turned into a dogfight between San Bernardino and Riverside.  RCC’s super freshman, Luis Gutierrez fought hard and was able to pull away from his teammate, John Guzman, to take the victory.  San Bernardino countered with a third place finish by Benjamin Barragan.  RCC’s Brandon Johnson, placed 4^th, while SBVC’s Joseph Aguilar took 5^th. 

The contest continued to be that close.  However, SBVC, with a 7^th, 9^th and 10^th place finish was able to just edge RCC by a scant 4 points, 34 to 38.  Saddleback, had a solid performance by placing 3^rd with El Camino and Mt. SAC finishing 4^th and 5^th respectively.

Results- Men    Women

Cerritos Fares Well In Arizona

By Daniel Ozan

10/6/12

The Cerritos Men and Women travelled to Arizona to tangle with the likes of some solid Division 1 schools as well as some of the top Arizona Community Colleges. 

The Men’s 8K was first and by mile 1 it looked to be a battle as a group of eight Men from various teams’ scaled the hill and passed the mile in 5:07 with rest of the pack a few meters behind.  Leading the charge was host Grand Canyons athlete Sharles Simon. By the halfway mark, the group of eight turned into five. Charging up the hill still in the lead was Simon, but following close were two New Mexico State University athletes, Munir Kahssay from Cerritos College and Arizona States Josh Walker. Right before the four mile, Kahssay took the lead and did not look back. Heading up the hill for the last time, Munir passed the four mile mark at 20:08 and picked up the pace to finish in a fine time of 24:53. Closing fast was Arizona States Josh Walker in 24:58 and rounding out the top 3 was Jonah Ruybalid of New Mexico State University in 24:59. Cerritos had 5 in the top twenty, but New Mexico State got the upper hand and placed 5 in the top 15 to take the team title with 38 points with Cerritos getting 2^nd with 57 points. Arizona State was 3^rd.

The Women’s race spread out very quickly as a slew of University of Arizona runners, as well as Mayra Chavez of New Mexico State University, controlled the front and took the race out in 5:41. Leading the second pack were Kaela Crone and Karina Sanchez of Cerritos College. At mile two, Arizona continued to show dominance as they had 3 in the top 5. The group was quickly spreading out and it was a battle as the rest of the field made their way up the hill. In the end, University of Arizona had too much as they took the top 3 spots. Melanie McGrath took individual honors with an 18:15. Katie Penney and Molly Callahan were 2^nd and 3^rd with an 18:20 and 18:32 respectively. Sanchez would place 10^th with a time of 19:07. Arizona had their top 5 in the top 15 and won the team title with 26 points. New Mexico State University was 2^nd with 47 points. Cerritos took 3^rd with 104 points.

Glendale wins both races at Foothill 

9/29/12

Article and photos by Tadzio Garcia

Runners leave the starting line at the start of the Foothill Invitational.

Backed by four top-ten finishes from the Glendale College men’s team and five from their women’s team, the Vaqueros took both titles at the Foothill Invitational from a field that included 211 runners. 

Glendale’s Kurt Lutz, who finished in 20:44, outran teammate Isaac Diosdado (20:54) to win the men’s 4-mile race. No. 4-ranked Glendale edged No. 2 San Bernardino College for the men’s title. Each team had four runners pace themselves to top-ten individual finishes. 

Final standings from a field of 11 teams also included No. 10 Cuyamaca College edging No. 13 East Los Angeles College by two points for third place, followed by Palomar, San Diego City and host Victor Valley colleges. 

The No. 2-ranked Glendale women’s team, en route to defending their state title, dominated from start to finish.  

Grace Graham-Zamudio kept her first place win streak alive finishing first in her fourth straight community college meet. She ran a blistering 18:05, a personal record, to win the women’s race.  

Nine of the ten women named to the All-Top10 Foothill Invitational team also ran personal records for this season including runner-up Jazmin Romero from SBVC (18:33) and Cuyamaca’s Paige Hughes (18:49) who took third. 

Glendale’s Lizette Gonzalez (19:04), Elizabeth Nelson (19:28), Charlene Quintanilla (19:39), Abril Ramirez (19:49), ran personal record’s while taking fourth through seventh. 

Other personal records were posted by Palomar’s Cristal Favela (19:59) and Glendale’s Lilia Asserian (20:17) who took eighth and 10th. East LA’s Megan Magdeleno (20:00) placed ninth. 

No. 11 Palomar took second place overall in the women’s 5k race followed by No. 13 Santiago Canyon, Cuyamaca, SBVC, East LA, Imperial Valley, West LA, Desert and Citrus colleges.

Results - men's ind.    women's ind.    men's team    women's team

 Santa Barbara & Southwestern Take Bakersfield

9/28/12

The Santa Barbara women and the Southwestern men took team titles at the Bakersfield Invitational this past Friday held at Kern Country Soccer Park.  While the Santa Barbara women had a convincing win, the Southwestern men had to squeak one out.

On the women’s side, Antelope Valley’s Emma Ramirez continued her fine season by winning the event, defeating Santa Barbara’s Cecilia Instebo.  AVC, grabbed the next spot with a third place finish of Monica Vasquez, which put them in the driver seat to take the event.  However, Santa Barbara was able to grab a 5^th, 11^th, 16^th, and 17^th to pull away from the rest of the field and win the meet by 21 points.

On the men’s side, the team from the deep-south, Southwestern, arrived in Kern County and were prepared for a tough meet.  The winner of the meet, Alex Ruther, from College of the Canyons ran a fine race and took the individual title by over 30 seconds.  Santa Barbara made an effort to go two for two as the next to spots were taken by their runners Ian Roberts and Omar Lopes.

Yet, Southwestern came storming back with a 4^th and 5^th place finish.  They would also grab 8^th and 14^th.  It was enough to just edge Santa Barbara by two points for the victory.

Results

Glendale & Trade Tech take Golden West Inv.

The women in the early stages of the race.  (photo, courtesy of Geoff Skarr)

The Glendale women began to take their familiar spot at the top of the leader board and the Trade Tech men showed that they are going to be a force to reckon with as both teams took home the blue ribbon at the Golden West Invitational this past Friday at Central Park in Huntington Beach.

In the women's competition, Grace Zamudio of Glendale held off the field to take the victory.  She finished ahead of Megan McNally and Karla Venola of Moorpark who by their 2nd and 3rd place finishes, gave their squad a tremendous boost.  Glendale finished with three athletes in the top ten, however, so did Moorpark.  In the end, Glendale just had a little bit more left in the tank as they were able to edge Moorpark by a scant four points.  Mt. SAC, which had a pair of runners finishing 6th and 12th respectively, showed that they were beginning to round in to championship form, grabbed the 3rd place spot.

Juan Rodriguez and Omar Cortes of LA Trade Tech on their way to a 1-2 finish.  (photo, courtesy of Geoff Skarr)

In the men's competition, Trade Tech, who only ran a skeleton squad at the Orange Coast Classic last week, came back in full force this week at Golden West.  Juan Rodriguez and Omar Cortes finished 1-2 as they grabbed 4 of the top 6 spots to thoroughly dominate the competition.  Only Glendale's Issac Diosdado and Kurt Lutz who finished 3rd and 4th respectively were able to break-up the onslaught.

In the end, Trade Tech took the top honors with Glendale finishing a strong second and Riverside taking third.

Results  

Cuesta & Saddleback Win at Tour de Cuesta

9/22/12

By Brian Locher

The second annual Tour de Cuesta, sponsored by VS Athletics was a small but strong affair held at Cuesta Fairbanks Cross Country course.Action started with the women's race where host Cuesta College was pitted against fellow So Cal power Saddleback College for the team title.  Nor Cal squad, West Hills put together their strongest women’s team to date as well.

Cuesta’s Lauren Silacci took the early lead through the mile but was followed closely up famed Tower Hill by Ana Gamboa of Saddleback just before the half way point in the race. Nikita Kinsell from Cuesta and Amanda Idris of Saddleback also looked strong running primarily by themselves for the majority of the race. From there it was a mix of Saddleback, Cuesta and strong running West Hills athletes making this race anyone guess.

Through mile 2 the race began to develop in to a 2 team battle as Gamboa took the lead to the finish followed by Silacci and Kinsell. In the mix of the race Cuesta athletes Jessica Armes and local product and course vet, Rebecca Cruz, were moving strong past their opponents. Through the switchbacks and to the finish Cuesta looked to have the slight edge as Saddlebacks #5 was some ways back. In the end the course ran conservative and Cuesta edged Saddleback by a mere 5 points, 30 to 35, with West Hills closing with 65 points.

The men’s race was controlled by Saddleback from the start with a smattering of Cuesta athletes challenging for the overall win. Mile 1 was crossed at a very pedestrian pace and it stayed this way through mile 2 as Ricky Medina, Brian Gomez and Mike Stoeffler from Saddleback and Gordon Sturgess, Jacob Becerra and Chris Conrad of Cuesta packed up in front. From there things heated up with Gomez, Medina and Sturgess, all top 20 competitors at the So Cal Preview meet, made surges for the lead. Atop Tower Hill Medina seemingly took control of the race but Sturgess followed closely behind. Saddleback would eventually put 8 runners in the top 11 to run away with the win and Medina looked unbeatable racing through the switchbacks to distance himself from 2^nd placer Sturgess. Saddleback – 22 to Cuesta’s 37 with West Hills coming in 3^rd.

Results

CERRITOS MEN AND WOMEN SHINE AT THE LOU VASQUEZ INVITATIONAL

9/21/12

By Daniel Ozan

Last Thursday the Lou Vasquez Invitational, held in San Francisco, had a handful of top state meet contenders and proved to live up to the hype.

First came the Women's race. Passing the first mile were a group of 6 runners, including Nor Cal standout Katie Castro of De Anza College. It quickly spread out after the mile. By mile two, Castro had a commanding lead but following her was College of Sequoias front runner Gabriela Zamora and Karina Sanchez of Cerritos College along with a slew of Cerritos athletes. Castro extended her lead and never looked back as she ran a fine time of 18:28. 2nd place went to Zamora in 18:44 and Sanchez in 18:57. Cerritos had four women in the top 10 to take the team title with 34 points over De Anza who was 2nd with 49 points.

On the Men's side it was a battle between the defending state champs of American River and the top team from the south Cerritos College. Both teams were in full force and after the first mile it looked as if the team title would be close as 4 ARC athletes and 4 Cerritos athletes blanketed the front of the pack. By mile two, a pack of five athletes had a 70 meter lead over the field as Munir Kahssay of Cerritos was in front but a few steps behind were two ARC athletes, Matt Airola and Luis Luna as well as two other Cerritos athletes, Jon Bazinet and Brandon Taylor. The last mile was a battle of positioning and a wrong turn by Luna proved to be the deciding factor. Kahssay won the race with a blistering 19:50 with Matt Airola taking 2nd in 20:03. Jon Bazinet was 3rd in 20:15. Cerritos took the team title with 27 points over the heavily favored American River squad who had 35 points. Cerritos had five in the top 10 and ARC had four in the top 10.

Results

OCC Defends Home while ARC Dominates

All photos courtesy of Dean Lofgren

9/15/12

Grace Zamudio ran a powerful race this weekend.

On a blistering hot day, where temperatures approached and sometimes exceeded triple digits, the OCC women defended their home, while the American River men dominated their southern counterparts at the OCC Classic, which also served as this year’s Southern California Preview Meet.

A pack of OCC runners start to move their way through the field.

In the women’s race, the OCC women were able to use excellent packing as they were able to hold off an improving Glendale team that placed 2^nd.  Moorpark also showed that it would be a force to reckon with as they were able to place 3^rd overall.

Munir Kahssay is pursued by a group of ARC athletes on his way to victory.

In all, OCC placed 3 women in the top 10 that was good enough to hold off the Glendale team that included the winner of the race, Grace Zamudio.  Jazmin Romero of San Bernardino placed 2^nd, while Moorpark’s Megan McNally placed 3^rd overall.

Two El Camino runners lead a pack in the early stages of the race.

In the men’s competition, rumors that American River might have a team that was even better than last year’s state title team turned out to be true.  The northern team completely obliterated the competition, placing an astounding 4 runners in the top 5, with only Cerritos athlete, Munir Kahssay, breaking up the onslaught with his individual victory.

Cerritos, with two runners in the top 10 placed 2^nd with Glendale grabbing the 3^rd place spot.

Results - Men    Women    Men Overflow    Women Overflow

Fresno Invitational

Sept 8, 2012

Story and Photos by Rick Anderson

Women’s 5k

Katie Castro of De Anza looks very strong during the early parts of the race.

In the women’s competition, Katie Castro of DeAnza college would take out the first mile in about 5:45 and build a 40 meter lead over Grace Graham-Zamudio  of Glendale and the field of 155 women. The two would quickly separate from the rest of the field. 

A pack of OCC runners start to make a move.

Just past the mile several OCC runners had packed, including Karen Silvas (#337), Carmille Garcia (#329), Raeanna Cortez (#327), one other OCC runner and Moorpark’s Rachel Naumann (#283). Moorpark  was moving several athletes into striking range of the top 5. 

Grace Graham Zamudio of GCC takes the victory.

Sophomore Grace Graham-Zamudio of Glendale would make a huge move in the middle of the back loop and overtake the sophomore Castro on the way to a convincing 22 second victory, as both runners would break 19 minutes in 18:35 and 18:57 respectively. Freshman Leann Allen of Orange Coast would take third in 19:01, the same time as 4^th place Moorpark sophomore Megan McNally. 5^th place would go to her Moorpark freshman teammate Karla Vernola in 19:16. Rounding out the top 10 was 6^th place OCC freshman Karen Silvas (19:24), Sequoias sophomore Gabriela Zamora (19:28), Glendale sophomore Lizette Gonzalez (19:28), Hartnell sophomore Victoria Alcala (19:31) and Moorpark freshman Rachel Naumann (19:32). 

The women's medal winners.

The women’s team competition ended up with four teams separated by just 28 points. Orange Coast would take home the team title with 54 points and an average top five time of 19:38. Moorpark, with 3 runners in the top 9, wound up second with 66 points. Glendale took third with 72 points followed closely by DeAnza College and their 82 points. 

Men’s 4 Mile 

The men's field flies from the start.

The men’s race, with 214 runners, and 20 complete teams, started  out rolling through the mile at 5:02, on the loose, dry course with a large pack filled with several Glendale runners.  

Runners start to establish themselves in the early stages of the race.

At the base of the first hill, 1.5 miles into the race, a lead pack had established itself including Issac Diosdado (#157), Kurt Lutz (#160), a few Orange Coast runners, and a mix of several others. As usual the American River team started slow and were working their way through the field, and by now had closed the gap to about 50 meters. 

Luis Luna of American River takes the title.

The second pack, which included ARC’s top 4, Glendale’s #3-#6, and a few Hartnell runners was on the move and closing the gap on the leaders.  

Over the final 2 miles of the course the American River team had moved up and had 4 of the top 5 places, including eventual winner freshman Luis Luna (#22) in a time of 20:47. ARC’s sophomore Matt Airola would outkick Modesto’s sophomore Alejandro Garcia for second in 20:56 and 20:57. Rounding out the top 10 were ARC freshmen Jacob Huston (20:59) and Will Reyes (21:00), Glendale sophomore Kurt Lutz (21:07), OCC freshman Austin Little (21:11), ARC’s sophomore Steven White (21:15), LA Valley’s sophomore Angel Alcantar (21:18) and Sequoias sophomore Daniel Guerrero (21:19). 

The men's medal winners.

In the team competition American River scored an impressive 20 points in a fine average top 5 time of 20:59. Glendale would finish 2^nd with 70 points, followed by Orange Coast (104), College of Sequoias (134) and Hartnell (141).

Results-  women's individual  women's team    men's individual    men's team

San Bernardino, East LA win Rio Hondo titles

9/8/12 

Story and Photos by Tadzio Garcia 

The men’s race takes off at the second Rio Hondo CC Invitational, which doubled in size from last year. No. 2 San Bernardino Valley College won the title with 30 points, followed by East Los Angeles (51 points) Southwestern (69), West Los Angeles (124), host Rio Hondo (147), Oxnard, Golden West (151), Oxnard (134) and, Citrus (209) colleges.

San Bernardino Valley College, No. 2 in SoCal, won the men’s race at the second annual 2012 Rio Hondo Cross Country Invitational while East Los Angeles College defended its 2011 women’s title. 

Joel Gilbert, Golden West’s No. 5 runner, helps the Rustlers edge Oxnard College for sixth place by outrunning the Condor’s No. 5 man at the second annual Rio Hondo Cross Country Classic at Legg Park in El Monte, Friday, Sept. 7, 2012

“We had a good quality meet with powerful outstanding teams that ran to good early season results,” said Gayle Harris-Watkins, coach of host Rio Hondo College. 

David Spangler and Dennis Cruz of San Bernardino Valley College, place third and 10th in 20:08 and 21:19 respectively, to help the Wolverines take the men’s title Sept. 12th at the Rio Hondo Invitational.

Backed by a one-two finish, No. 2 SBVC, 2011 state runner-ups, edged East Los Angeles College for first place in the men’s four-mile race. Calvan Davis won the individual title in 20:08 followed by teammate David Spangler (20:53). Southwestern College’s Carlos Ponce (20:27) placed third individually, helping his Jaguar teammates to third place overall.  West Los Angeles College edged Rio Hondo for fourth place. 

Megan Magdaleno records a personal record, 19.47, while out-sprinting Karla Gadea from Southwestern for third place. The East Los Angeles College Huskies edged the Jaguars for the women’s title at the 2012 Rio Hondo Invitational in El Monte, Sept. 7

The ELAC Huskies pack edged Southwestern College by five points for first place in the women’s 5k race followed by Citrus, Golden West, Oxnard and West Los Angeles colleges, which placed third through sixth places respectively. 

The men’s All-Top 10 team from the 2012 Rio Hondo Classic, include: Bottom row from left, Cesar Berumen (fourth place), David Spangler (second) and Calvan Davis (first) all from San Bernardino Valley College. Top row from left are Kris Chacon (sixth) from ELAC, Alex Amankwah (seventh) from West LA, Andres De La Cruz (eighth) from ELAC and Dennis Cruz (10th) from SBVC. Not pictured include Carlos Ponce (fourth place) and Brandon Lopez (ninth) from Southwestern College.

Freshman Vanessa Martinez from Oxnard College won the individual title in 19:22, followed by Sierra Echols of Southwestern (19:30), and Megan Magdaleno (19:47) of ELAC, who both placed second and third respectively.  

“Martinez is an outstanding young athlete whose hard work paid off,” said Oxnard Coach Geno Sharp.

RCC and Cerritos Victorious at Palomar

9/7/12

The Riversided men and the Cerritos women both took home victories at the Palomar Invitational that was held at Guajome Lake Park this past Friday. 

The women's field takes off from the start.  (photo, courtesy of Hugh Gerhardt)

The day was warm with a slight breeze coming out of the north as the women toed the line.  The race formed very quickly with Cerritos taking control early as the athletes passed through the first mile mark.

The women charge past the first mile. (photo, courtesy of Hugh Gerhardt)

In the individual competition, San Bernardino Valley's Jazmin Romero took control of the race at about the midway mark.  She would go on to win the race with Cerritos' Isabel Medina taking second and Fullerton's Maegan Garritson taking third.

Two RCC athletes getting ready to take control. (photo, courtesy of Hugh Gerhardt)

The final team scores had Cerritos winning, with Palomar placing second and Riverside third.

The men's competition was a true battle.  In the beginning, Saddleback looked to have control of the race after the first mile.  However, as the race progressed, Riverside began to take control led by Luis Gutierrez and Brandon Johnson.

They would go on to place 1-2 with Saddleback's Richardo Medina and Brian Gomez going 3-4.  The way the individuals finished would mimic the final results of the race with Riverside taking first and Saddleback taking second.  Cerritos would finish third.

Results

Cuyamaca Invitational Showcases San Diego Schools

9/1/12

Story by Anthony Garcia

El Camino and De Anza Win at Ventura

All Photos courtesy of Dean Lofgren

9/1/12

The men's field takes off from the start.

The El Camino men and the De Anza women took home early season victories at the Ventura Invitational this past weekend.  Both schools are hoping that these early season successes will be a prelude to good things to come for the rest of the 2012 season.

Miranda-Lavertu takes control of the race on his way to victory.

On the men’s sid, ECC’s Reo Miranda-Lavertu won the race in a solid early season time of 22:34.  In all ECC placed three in the top five.  With that many athletes in the top five, ECC went on to the comfortable victory, defeating runner-up, Mt. SAC, 28-47.  Santa Monica placed third.

Other good performances were turned in by Mt. SAC’s Justin Ogan who placed 2^nd overall and De Anza’s Andrew Kuo who placed 4^th.

Katie Castro powers her way to the win.

On the women’s side, De Anza showed that they will be a power to deal with as they defeated some very fine teams to take the team title.  De Anza’s Katie Castro won the race.  Antelope Valley, who placed 2^nd overall, had the next three finishers, led by Emma Ramirez.  Mt. SAC, who’s top finisher was Miriam Jiminez in 9^th, placed 3^rd overall as a team.

A pair of Bakersfield runners team up.

Results -   Men    Women

2012 CROSS COUNTRY PREVIEW

All photos courtesy of Dean Lofgren

Men

Last season, the North rose to prominence behind the outstanding performance of its most traditional power, American River.  Their victory supplanted San Bernardino Valley, who had one of the most dominant runs in recent memory.  This year, we might see more of the same, as ARC and SBVC seem poised to make another run at the title.  However, there are other teams, that may be ready to move in.

Matt Airola is the top runner on a powerful ARC squad.

        1.   American River – ARC will be returning three powerful runners from last year’s squad.  While they lost the state individual champion, Garret Seawell, they do have 3 heavyweights who will put them in a fantastic position for this year.  Back is Matt Airola after a 7^th place finish last season.  Airola had a monster track season that included a state title in the 1500 and PR of 3:45!  In addition, Will Melton and Steven White will add big time credentials as both placed in the top 25 last season.

Erick Perez led SBVC in 2011, but will be gone in 2012.

        2.  San Bernardino Valley- SBVC usually wins on depth and packing.  Last year, they had a fine squad but not good enough to overtake a devastating ARC squad.  This year, however, SBVC will be returning some very strong athletes that could make a big impact.    Benjamin Barragan placed 10^th overall, and will return in 2012.  Also back will be Joseqph Aguilar and Juan Arjona who took 38^th and 48^th at the state meet respectively.

San Diego Mesa packed well in 2011, but need to replace a lot this season.

        3. San Diego Mesa – The power from the deep south had a great year, reaching the podium  and re-establishing the tradition of cross country excellence that Mesa is known for.  However, unfortunately, they will be decimated by graduations as they return only one runner from the previous year, Carlos Bojorquez.

Augustin Alva placed 2nd last year, Trade Tech looks to Cortes to take that role.

        4.  LA Trade Tech – Trade Tech started out the year looking like they may be the team to beat as they won some big time invitationals.  They had a great year, but just missed the podium.  Trade Tech did lose some key athletes to graduation including Bryon Puentes, Sean Graham Perez and Augie Alva.  Yet, they do have some very good athletes coming back.  This includes Omar Cortes and Jesus Ortiz.  Cortes started to really come on during track season, so people may want to look for him to make a big move this season.

Zach Ellis was a top OCC runner in 2011, but OCC graduated a lot.

        5.  Orange Coast- OCC had a strong year, that has been typical of their program.  Placing 5^th overall, OCC found itself in its traditional role as a distance power.  However, they did lose many of their up front runners and what returns will be challenged to make a move into the top three.  Top returners include Austin Little and Dillon Scott who placed 42^nd and 66^th respectively at the state meet.

Munir Kahssay will lead a Cerritos squad where expectations are high.

        6.  Cerritos – Cerritos, which has been a distance power, had a very strong year, placing among the states elite.  Daniel Herrera was the catalyst for this team but has taken his talents to UCLA. However, their biggest loss may have been their entire coaching staff.  Head Coach and program architect, John Goldman, has now moved to Long Beach City and  assistant, Christian Cruz has rejoined his alma mater at Mt. SAC.  Yet, they did not leave the cupboard bare.  Instead, they left Cerritos with a remarkable collection of talent that includes maybe the best distance runner in the state, Munir Kahssay.  Also back, is Tommie Poston and Brandon Taylor.  With the talent that was left for them, the pressure is on.  Anything less than a visit to the podium would have to be a major disappointment in 2012.

Glendale packed well in many events in 2011.

        7.  Glendale- GCC had a very good year, placing 7^th overall.  They should be a team to watch in 2012.  Eddie Lopez always seems to have his troops ready and this year, he definitely has some talent to work with.  Mizrael Mendez and Issac Diosdado are both back and should be major players at this year’s state meet.  Mendez could be a threat to place in the top five which would give GCC a chance to make a big time move in the team rankings.

ECC should be in contention again in 2011.

        8.  El Camino – ECC is a team that is always in the mix and 2012 was no exception.  Even after losing the likes of David Cardona, Dean Lofgren always seems to have his team ready when it counts most.  Look for them to be there once again in 2012.  With top runner David Rosales returning and another year to bring in more talent, which ECC always does, should have people looking for another top 10 performance from this squad.

Alcantar will lead LA Valley in 2012.

        9.  LA Valley – The last couple of years has seen LA Valley become one of the more consistent players during the cross country season.  Although they do not have an athlete returning that can crack the top five, they do have a solid core that could keep them strong.  Top athletes to watch for are Angel Alcantar and Jesus Garzon.

Brandon Johnson will be a key returner for RCC.

        10.  Riverside- RCC rounded out the top ten last season.  Rumors have it that they will have a very strong recruiting class coming in for this year.  They also have a solid group of athletes coming back, that if they improve, which they should, could move them up very high in the rankings.  Of their returners, John Guzman and  Brandon Johnson are the top two.  They also have Daniel Ybarra and Nicholas Rini, both of whom were contributors in 2011 and are back for this years campaign.

  Women

For the last several years, Glendale has been the state standard in women’s cross country.  If they were not taking the title outright, they were usually in the bridesmaid spot.  Last season, they regained their crown after losing it to a powerful Southwestern squad that smashed several records during the 2010 campaign.  However, the landscape has been changing as other schools are looking to step up to the plate and other traditional powers may be looking to regain past glory.

Alyssa Selve will be missed, but GCC is ready to roll again.

        1.  Glendale- The defending champions lost a tremendous amount to graduation, however, they still have a very effective 1-2 punch in Grace Zamudio and Nohemi Martinez.  Although, early reports have her not in shape, once she starts to regain her condition, Martinez, who placed 13^th overall, should be very effective.  Once again, Glendale will have to be in the conversation when it comes to the women’s title prospects.

If OCC can keep their pack healthy, they should be a factor again.

        2.  Orange Coast – the Lady Pirates placed 2^nd overall at the State Championships.  The traditional power was very solid in the middle and will be again this year if they can stay healthy.  Injuries to key athletes, such as Carmille Garcia, played havoc with their state title hopes in 2011.  OCC will bring back some outstanding athletes that could include some front runners.  Joining Garcia, will be Chelsea Clifford who placed 12^th overall last season.

Victoria Ortega will be one of the leaders on a powerful Mountie squad.

        3.  Mt. SAC – The Lady Mounties have a long and storied tradition in cross country.  Back in the late 90’s, they were the dominant team in the state, and after placing 3^rd last year, Coach Doug Todd has to be excited about his prospects this season.  Quite simply, Mt. SAC returns maybe the most complete and potent line-up in the state, with 6 of their top 7 women returning from a team that placed 3^rd in the state.  This includes, Brianna Gonzalez and Victoria Ortega, both top 25 finishers from last season.  With this group, they have to be one of the favorites to take it all.

Devon Kelsey is gone leaving a large void in the Cuesta line-up.

        4.  Cuesta – The team from the central coast had one of its best seasons in years, placing 4^th overall.  They did this behind two star athletes, Devon Kelsey and Corinne Evans.  Yet, like all schools must go through sooner or later, Cuesta will need to rebuild, only returning two key athletes in Nikita Kinsella and Jennie Stallman.

Emma Ramirez gives AVC a legitimate front running threat.

        5.  Antelope Valley- the team from the high desert has just recently asserted itself among the state’s elite and placed in the top 5, establishing itself as a genuine threat.  This year, they will have a few holes to fill, but that is not to say that they will be without returning talent.  Emma Ramirez who placed 8^th overall and should be a legitimate front runner.  Also back is Monica Vasquez who could certainly add depth.

Megan McNally will be the leader of a Moorpark squad which is very dangerous.

        6.  Moorpark – From early reports, Moorpark is having one of its best recruiting classes in years.  That is great news for them, because they will add that talent to a solid group of athletes that found them in the 6^th place spot at the state championships.  Megan McNally, who placed 9^th last season will give them a legitimate front runner.  Also back is Emily Kelly, who should improve.  Look for this team to be a legitimate threat in 2012.

Ruth Rodarte is the top returner for Trade Tech.

        7.  LA Trade Tech – Trade Tech started out very strong and was able to maintain consistency throughout the season placing 7^th overall.  They have a very good group of athletes returning, which includes, Lucia Trejo who placed 20^th overall, and Ruth Rodarte who took 42^nd..  Initial reports have Trade Tech adding considerable depth through recruiting.

Christal Favela will be part of a solid Palomar group.

       8.   Palomar has been consistently entering the state rankings.  Last season, they cracked the top ten.  They did it through packing, lacking a front runner to bring down their overall score.  If they can add a front runner through recruiting or through continual development of what they already have, they could make some major moves.  Their top returner is Kathryn Bovatte who placed 24^th overall and should be one to watch.

Dominique Guinnane will be back to bolster De Anza.

        9.  De Anza –This was the sole team from up north to make their way into the top ten.  They did not have a front runner with their first athlete placing 39^th overall.  Yet, their top five did pack well enough to keep them in the mix.  Their top returner this year will be Odessy Tapia, who may be able to make a move into the top 20.

Arielle Barragan is part of a consistently improving Lancer squad.

        10.  Pasadena – This is another team that has gradually improved to the point where they can be looked at as a top ten threat on a yearly basis.  Like some of the other teams that have moved into this top ten area, they have done it through smart racing and packing.  They will need to have a front runner to continue their ascent, however, and do not have that returning this year.  Their top athlete could be Diane Lombardi who placed 49^th overall.