After two second place finishes her first two years of high school XC, Mayfield soph Audrey Suarez made it to the top of the podium with her 17:24 win in the Div IV race as Saturday’s CIF Divisional Championship Finals in Riverside.  Audrey’s time was short of her course PR and #2 All-Time SGV 16:54 from last year, but it was a solid three second win.

Audrey was the SGV’s only podium athlete this year, but she led a group eight girls to All-CIF (Top 15) Honors in the biggest & strongest regional meet in the world. This was Suarez’s third All-CIF award, and she is joined in that honor by Lily Miller (Jr, Vivian Webb) who was 5th/18:49 in Div V – her third straight fifth-place finish!  Here’s the full list…

Three other SGV girls earned their second All-CIF honor - Maddie Coles (So, Claremont) – 7th/17:16 in Div II, Azalea Seguara-Mora (Sr, Claremont) 9th/17:21 and Ellaney Matarese (Jr, La Canada) – 15th/18:30 in Div IV

Div II – 17:16 – Maddie Coles (So, Claremont) – 7th
Div II – 17:21 - Azalea Segura-Mora (Sr, Claremont) – 9th
Div II – 17:24 - Angie Gushue (Jr, Claremont) – 11th
Div IV – 17:24 - Audrey Suarez (Jr, Mayfield) – 1st
Div IV – 18:09 - Sydney Morrow (So, South Pasadena) – 6th
Div IV – 18:30 - Ellaney Matarese (Jr, La Canada) – 15th
Div V – 18:49 - Lily Miller (Jr, Vivian Webb) – 5th
Div V – 19:22 - Alessia Checcone (Jr, Poly) – 10th

All eight girls advanced to the California State Meet, Morrow, Matarese, Miller and Checcone as individuals and the rest with their teams.

Performances were slower overall this year, so there were few additions to the SGV All-Time Performers list on the Riverside Course. Here the athletes who joined or moved up the list at Finals or Prelims.

•    6th/17:21 - Azalea Segura-Mora – Sr, Claremont
• =7th/17:24 - Angie Gushie – Jr, Claremont
• 20th/17:48 – Isatu N’Daiye – Sr, Claremont
• 31st/18:09 - Sydney Morrow – So, South Pasadena
• 36th/18:18 - Abbie Laurel – So, Walnut
• =50th/18:31 - Milo Santiago – Sr, Walnut (at Prelims)
• =50th/18:31 - Miranda Palacios – Fr, Covina

You can view the updated list here - SGV XC Top 50 Riverside

Claremont’s streak of CIF Championships ended with their second place finish in the loaded Div II at Saturday’s CIF Southern Section Divisional Championships, but they remain the SGV’s dominant team, and their finish was the highest for our area’s 23 teams that advanced to Finals.

Four teams will move on to this weekend’s California State Championships in Fresno, led by Claremont and Div IV perennials Mayfield, who were 4th in their division. The Cubs have advanced to state in every year of this decade save 2013, while the Wolfpack have moved on seven straight years.

Covina who finished 3rd in Div IV, returns to the State Meet for the first time since their three-year streak that ended in 2016. The fourth SGV team in Fresno is newcomer Arroyo. This was their fourth straight year making Finals, but they will move on to State for the first time ever after a 4th place finish in Div III.

And one notable streak ended, as many-time Div V champ Flintridge Prep finished 9th and did not advance to State for the first time this decade, and I believe the streak is much longer.

Twenty-Three SGV girls teams advanced to this year’s Finals, the most ever for our area in this era of expanded Finals at the Riverside XC Course. The decade’s best for the years with 16 team Finals was 12 in 2011.

Bonita (19th in Div. III) Claremont, Flintridge Prep, Mayfield & Poly (10th in Div V) advanced to the Final every year of this decade, a strong achievement for those programs.

See a chart of SGV XC CIF Finalists + State at this link

Among the twenty-three, Gabrielino (22nd/Div III) Wilson (15th/Div IV) and St Paul (21st/Div V) advanced to the Final for the first time in the decade -and maybe ever! San Dimas (14th Div. IV) and Ramona Convent (17th Div V) made it again after advancing to the Final for the first time last year.

Flintridge Prep claimed the San Gabriel Valley’s sole championship while Claremont were again easily the region’s best team at Saturday’s CIF Southern Section Divisional Championships at the Riverside Cross Country Course.

Five teams will move on to this weekend’s California State Championships in Fresno, led by Div. V champions Flintridge Prep. The Rebels ran a great final and earned the title for the first time since 2015 and continued their many many year streak of advancing to the State Meet. Five teams is the third best for our region from 2009 on. The best years were 2009 and 2015, when our the SGV sent seven to Fresno. See a chart of SGV XC CIF Finalists + State at this link

Claremont fell to fourth this year in the loaded Div II, after a runner-up finish last year and a championship in 2017. Astonishingly, they were also fourth best overall in the entire Southern Section. This will be their sixth straight year finishing their season in Fresno.

The three other State Meet teams are newcomers – two were expected and one was a big surprise. Arroyo and La Serna just missed moving on last year but this year finally punched their tickets with 6th place finishes in Div. III and Div I, respectively. This is the Knights first time back at the State Meet since their Championship in 1987, and the Lancer’s fist time ever.

But the biggest come through was the performance from Wilson. Heat winners in Prelims with a bunch of strong performances, they were a solid fourth in the Div. IV Finals. This is a huge turn around for the Wildcats – earning their first spot in Finals and the State meet after failing to even advance to Prelims the last three years.

Twenty-One SGV boys teams advanced to this year’s Finals, the second most ever for our area, after 2017’s, in this era of expanded Finals at the Riverside XC Course. The best for year with 16 team Finals was 14 in 2016 and 2013.

Along with Wilson, La Salle was back in the Finals for the first time in at least 11 years (that’s how far back our records go) and Marshall advanced for probably the first time ever (at least since 1998). Damien made the Final for the first time since 2011 and Glendora and Walnut advanced for the first time since 2013.

Arcadia joins Flintridge Prep as the only SGV teams to make the Finals every year since 2009. California has made every Final since 2012, Claremont since 2013 and Bishop Amat since 2014.

About 40% of the San Gabriel Valley’s cross country programs opened their seasons this past weekend, scattered around Southern California in mostly low-key opening races. Here’s a quick round-up of the four races held outside of the SGV..

Great Cow Run – 3 miles

The Great Cow run, 3 flat miles on a fast course at Cerritos County Park, is one of the top opening meets in SoCal, SGV powers California and Arcadia opened here, but neither program ran close full-strength. The Apache boys were 8th overall, with El Rancho a solid 15th/83:09.

Complete Results

In the girls race, Cal finished well at 6th/98:04, with senior Mai Quesada leading SGV athletes with her 22nd/19:06 finish – nearly a minute better than last year at this meet

The best male performance was from Rowland senior Nicholas Acevedo, who is way ahead of his 2018 bests with a tenth overall finish in 15:25 on the fast, flat 3-mile course.

Riverside Showcase – 2.25 miles

Complete Results

SGV schools came out strong on this opener on a short, 2.25 mile version of the CIF-SS Championship course in Riverside.

The La Mirada girls led the charge, winning this 10-team meet by putting their first five in the top 21 of the race. Bonita were 4th in the race that saw SGV girls put five in the first ten: Alexis Corvese (St. Lucy’s) 4th/14:13; Mariah Waters (La Mirada) 6th/14:26; Arianna Kumar (Bonita) 8th/14:34; Natalia Zuniga (La Mirada) 9th/14:37; Sophia Gomez (La Mirada).

CIF-ranked Bonita were the top boys team, finishing 7th in a field of 18. Daniel Echeveste (Bonita) 5th/11:18; Danny Ebiner (Damien) 10th/11:25 had the top local performances.

And, at the UCSB Gaucho Invitational, the Polytechnic girls finished 7th in a field of 11, led by senior Sophie Phinney, who was 19th/20:28 on the flat 3-mile course. The boys were led by a 29th/16:55 finish by senior Evan Hayes but did not score as a team.  (Full Results)

Parents, friends, coaches – please help make our coverage better by sending race notes and photos (right away!) to info@sgvtrackandfield.net

Rising power La Serna expanded their XC portfolio by hosting a new meet this year - the Lancer Invitational – a 2-mile opener over the familiar rolling hills of La Mirada Park.

Complete Results

The hosts took both races, the girls edged out Bishop Amat 24-31 while the boys rolled to a big win. Maddie Franco (La Serna, Sr) took the girls race by 18 seconds in 12:05, while Diamond Ranch Connor Parker was a close winner in an excellent 10:01.

And here’s a photo gallery from the meet.

Two of the SGV’s best, Arroyo senior Noah Hibbard and Mayfield soph Audrey Suarez finished their season at the 40th Annual Footlocker Championship on Saturday at Balboa Park in San Diego. This national championship meet brings together 40 of the top boys and girls from around the country (and US possessions) who have qualified through regional meets.

Official Results

The girls led things off on the rolling 5000m course. California Div. IV champ Suarez did not go with the lead group of 7 who blew off the front in 5:15 for the first mile, sitting 35th in 5:35. In the slower second mile of the course, she split 6:05 but moved up four spots. In the faster final section of the course, she gained one more spot (and nearly another) in the last 1.1 mile  to finish 30th in 18:31.

Afterwards, Audrey said the race “… was an experience I have never had before. I think coming into this I really didn’t have any expectations, which was good. So I wasn’t disappointed. This is definitely the coolest experience that running has led me to by far.”

Hibbard, State Div. II runner-up, was in the middle of the pack of the boys race, 3 seconds off the lead, as the whole field stayed together through the first mile. In the second 1-1/2 mile, a lead group of 11 formed, with Noah coming just off the back of the second group, standing 26th at the split. He held his place over the final 660m to finish 26th in 16:10.

While Noah had expected a better finish, he was thankful for the chance to race one more time. “Although I felt that I ran terribly, I feel blessed to make it here to compete against the very best. This was the first year I went to states and regionals, so making it to nationals was an extra bonus. My goal was to place in a good pack, in the top half. Being in the top 20’s gives me confidence, knowing that I finished among the top 30 in the nation.”

And with that, the 2018 Cross Country Season comes to an end.

Stay tuned for our post-season honors and track and field coverage.

Walnut senior Chloe Arriaga and the Claremont girls team competed last weekend at the Nike Cross Nationals in Portland, Oregon.

Official Results

NXN brings together teams that qualify directly from regions and through an at-large selection process and individuals who advance through the same process. The Wolfpack advanced on the strength of their win in Div II of the California State meet, which placed them second in a merge of the top teams from the event. Chloe advanced individually by finishing 4th in Div I and 6th overall.

This meet is part of huge event put on by Nike for the athletes that includes meet ups with professionals and tours. It’s run on a 3 mile course at Glendover Golf Course.

CHS frosh Maddie Coles was again her team’s top performer, finishing 43rd overall and 12th among the athletes from teams in 18:00 – fourth among Californians in the meet. Next up was Arriaga, finishing 61st overall and 9th among Californians in 18:13.

Claremont was a little more spread out than usual, with a 1:17 spread from Coles to their number 5, but that was more of a measure of how well Maddie ran rather than a the other girls falling back. They finished 12th overall, ending another outstanding season.

The San Gabriel Valley has always been well represented in the CIF-SS’s Division 1, and we’ll be well-represented again with four teams moving on in nation’s toughest division.

CIF Div 1 Girls Merged Results

SGV #2 Walnut won their qualifying heat in 90:34 and Chloe Arriaga was first in an easy 17:19. Amanda Ghibaudo was 9th/18:08 moves up to =26th All-Time SGV on this course. But just as important was the return of soph Anastasia Sloan from illness and the emergence of Milo Santiago (18:53) as a solid #5 for the Mustangs. Their chances of a high Finals finish and a trip to the State Meet look better than ever.

Going the other way, SGV #12 Arcadia ran probably their best year of the season, but were only 11th/96:27 in the first of three heats, ending a Finals streak that dated to 2010. The Apaches were fourth in the State last year, but with Joyce Wu as the only returner from that team, 2018 was a season-long quest to rebuild, and they were just short. Joyce finished 5th/17:57 in the race and will move on individually.

SGV #5 California and #10 La Serna had long-shot hopes of advancing, but their season ends here. The Condors were the closer, finishing just behind Arcadia in 12th/96:33 while the Lancers were 14th/97:54 in their heat.

Diamond Bar was competing in the Prelims for the first time in many years, and they ran a solid 16th/103:16. Bell Gardens was 18th/97:30 in their race and Schurr was 19th/108:25.

CIF Div 1 Boys Merged Results

In the Boys races, SGV #2 California advanced easily for the 7th straight year with a strong 3rd/77:54 effort punctuated by excellent efforts from Angel Salinas – 7th/15:19 – =17th All-Time SGV on this course, Ethan Ruiz – 9th/15:24 – =27th A-T, and Jack Martinez  – 18th/15:35 is =41st A-T.

SGV #4 Arcadia put together a solid race, especially up front, to advance in 3rd/78:18, a spot they’ve earned for at least 10th straight years. As they have been all year, the Apaches were led by Jacob Hsu – 6th/15:14,  now =13th SGV A-T here and Tianyuan Pei -13th/15:24 is =25th A-T.

SGV#3 La Serna bounced back from a disappointing league meet with an excellent 2nd/77:47 finish to earn their second ever spot in the Finals. Marco Perez was best at 10th/15:27, just off his time here last year. Gerald Baltzer was 13th/15:29 and is =31st A-T, Jesse Montez – 16th/15:31 is =34th and Aidan Arredondo – 25th/15:34 is =38th A-T.

In the merged results of the three heats, La Serna was ranked 5th and California 7th – so a State Meet spot is certainly in the cards for them. That would be the fourth time the Condors advanced to State and the first ever for the Lancers. Arcadia is 11th, so they’ll race next week with a solid shot at returning to Fresno for the first time since 2015

Two SGV League champs also competed in Div. 1 but did not advance.  Walnut, Hacienda winners,  were 16th/82:03 in their heat and Schurr, Almont Champs were 21st/89:55. Diamond Bar, competing in Prelims for the first time in over a decade were, 17th/85:37 in their heat, while Montebello was 18th/78:48 and Bell Gardens – 20th/92:35

SGV Tops 10’s and Team Bests After the jump  Continue reading CIF Prelims — Div 1: Walnut Finds a Fifth, La Serna Bounces Back and Arcadia’s Streak Ends →