CIF XC Championships

Yesterday the cross country teams competed in the CIF San Diego Section cross country championships. Contested every year at Morley Field, the 10 races, divided by division and gender, see all of the boys and girls teams in the San Diego section on the starting line. This is the final meet of the year for most runners, as qualifying for next week’s State Meet is very difficult. In division 5, three boys teams go to State, along with 5 individuals who finish in the top 14. For the girls, the top two teams qualify, along with 5 individuals who finish in the top 12. On the starting line today, there were 169 boys and 23 scoring teams, and then 123 girls and 16 teams. Conditions for this year’s races were nearly perfect. Rain earlier in the week meant that the dust that runners usually experience at Morley wouldn’t appear, and temperatures remained mild even after the sun broke free from morning clouds.

Saying that the boys D-5 race was competitive is an understatement. Francis Parker is ranked 2nd in the state, while Santa Fe Christian is ranked 3rd. Of course, we know how fast they are since we see them in our Coastal League meets. Several teams that in another year might have been thinking about finishing 1st or 2nd were instead fighting for the 3rd qualifying spot. There were also several speedy individuals in the qualifying mix. The Country Day boys finished 6th in league and 9th in the conference just last week, and hypothetical models put us anywhere between 9th and 12th at CIF. So the focus was on finishing the season with the best race of the year and maintaining a competitive racing mentality. Even Tian Zhou, who had dreams of qualify for State at the beginning of the season, knew that because of the fierce competition and his own interrupted training due to medical issues, his chances were slim. The sea of boys took off from the gun and headed down towards the “dog loop,”, then headed back towards the half-mile mark before circling Bud Kearns pool. The front pack was huge, as was the group of boys just behind it. Not much changed as the boys made their way around the “picnic loop” before hitting the mile #1 mark at the base of the course’s one big hill. This is where the leaders begin to separate and the pretenders begin to falter. The Country Day boys were in good shape after a fast but not overly aggressive first mile. Tian came through in 5:40, then Daven Gujral, Paul Criado, and John Guckian in quick succession between 6:00 and 6:07, then Jake Needle, Aidan Ideker, and Eisa al Mazrouei between 6:15 and 6:27. Most importantly, all of the boys looked solid and in control after the hill. Up through the start area again, down to the dog loop, and back towards the pool – at the 2-mile mark Parker’s Kenan Pala and Maranatha’s Riley Burns were battling it out with SFC’s Alex Bobowski just a few seconds behind, and the rest of the top 20 or so trickling back behind them. Country Day came through the 2nd mile in 8th place with 249 points – better than anticipated. Over the next mile the boys showed just what kind of competitors they are as they picked up 22 points and jumped to 6th place in the team standings. Tian finished in 17:43 and 30th, an improvement of 43 seconds over last year. Daven improved 18 seconds with his 18:27 (46th) finish. Paul was close behind in 18:30 (49th) and Jake wasn’t far behind him in 18:45 (54th). Paul improved 1:24 over last year, while for Jake it was 1:45! John, Eisa, and Aidan, running in their first CIF race, finished in 18:56 (57th), 19:04 (63rd), and 19:42 (83rd). While some of the boys had slightly better overall paces in other races this season, CIF was easily their strongest team effort of the season. They bested two conference teams who beat them just last week (Bishop’s and Calvin) as well as a few teams who had been pegged to beat them. Immediately following the race, the boys were already talking about how they would improve even more next year. With no seniors on the team, there’s no reason to doubt them.

At the beginning of the season our girls team, at 8 members, was twice as big as last year and could think about how they might compete as a team. The squad was returning two state qualifiers, Ilaria Comfort and Jenna Hernandez, and an improved Grace Karmazin-Schneider after a summer of running. The addition of Jaden McDaniel (back at LJCDS after 1.5 years in Belgium), freshmen Sarah Lindlan and Aubree Potter, and newcomers sophomore Vivian Li and junior Alexcia Doak meant we had a good mix of experience and potential. Unfortunately, varying circumstances meant that by CIF we only had Ilaria, Jaden, Grace, Sarah, and Aubree able to race, and Aubree was iffy earlier in the week with a sore ankle. The girls finished 6th in league and 9th in the conference just last week, and hypothetical models put us anywhere between 7th and 10th at CIF – with our full squad. Without Jenna, our usual 4th scorer, those predictions shift downward quite a bit. The girls race was also very competitive, with last year’s state qualifiers, SFC (ranked 3rd in the state) and Bishop’s, returning all their runners and stronger than last year. CIF champ and all-state runner from Christian, Alaina Zamorano, was also back, along with several other girls vying for individual spots at State. Ilaria and Jaden could both realistically shoot for one of these spots, but even with a great race they might remain elusive. For all the girls, as for the boys, the main goal was to end the season with a strong performance and keep the racing mentality throughout the 2.96 miles. The Country Day girls managed the 1st mile very well and came through it, and at the hill, exactly where we hoped they’d be. Jaden came by at 6:31, Ilaria at 6:44, Grace at 7:11, Sarah at 7:30, and Aubree at 8:30. Like the boys, the girls came off the hill looking good and ready to tackle the rest of the race. Unfortunately, Ilaria, Grace, and Sarah, slowed a little down in the dog loop, leading to a slower-than-hoped-for 2nd mile. Jaden, however, came through in 13:34 and 9th. Right behind her was a girl from Liberty Charter, and in total there were 7 girls not wearing the red & white of SFC or the maroon of Bishop’s in the top 12. Could Jaden stay in the top 12, and also be among the first five individuals? Like the boys before them, the girls collectively made a strong push over the final mile (actually .96) to move up two spots, from 7th (176 pts) to 5th (168 pts). Aubree made up the most ground, improving 9 spots and winning a sprint finish to come in 78th at 25:25. She average 8:45 pace for the first two miles, but 8:10 for the final stretch. Sarah also won a sprint at the finish as she completed her best race of the season, finishing 56th in 23:53. Grace crossed the line in 22:09 (33rd), 48 seconds faster than last year. Ilaria wasn’t able to repeat as a state qualifier, but still ran a solid 21:24 (24th). From the gun, Zamorano took the lead and never looked back; she would win easily, taking the 1st individual qualifying spot. Martenson and Schmidt from SFC ran together for much of the race and finished 2-3. They were followed by the Steer sisters from Pacific Ridge, finishing 4th and 5th and taking the next two qualifying spots. Maddie Cramer from Bishop’s was next; Bishop’s would also take 11th and 12th. Gladden from HTHNC finished 7th, taking the 4th qualifying spot. Coming into the last stretch to the finish, side by side, were Jaden and McMillen from SFC, with Torres from Liberty Charter close behind. Jaden won the duel, finishing 8th in 19:53 and securing the 5th and final state-qualifying spot. In finishing 5th the girls surpassed expectations and also bested conference teams who had beaten them last week (Maranatha and Calvin).

All told, it was a great day for Torrey XC as both teams ran their best team races of the season and set many new personal records on the CIF course. Congratulations to Jaden for qualifying for State! She will race in the D-5 State Championship at Fresno’s Woodward Park next Saturday.

Thanks to everyone who came out to support the runners!