Cross country world descends on Woodward Park on Saturday for 3C2A Championships
FRESNO - Steady rain has been falling most of the week, but sparks will be flying this Saturday at Woodward Park in Fresno for the California Community College Athletic Association Cross Country Championships. “The rain should clear up in time for the course to be reasonably dry and accommodating for fast races. Race day temperatures are forecasted to be perfect: low-mid-50s, minimal wind and clear air,” said race director, CJ Albertson of Clovis Community College.
The day will begin at 10 a.m. with the 47th women’s 3.1-mile race and it will be one to watch! “The Southern California Championships winner, Maya Natarajan of Moorpark, is undefeated against community college competition. NorCal champion Erica Dorn of San Mateo, has only lost to SoCal runner-up Jazzlyn Islas of San Diego Mesa. However, that was the first race of the season and she has since improved. Look for all three women to be battling it out for the title,” said Albertson.
Siena Pignataro (De Anza), Mary Hooper (Monterey Peninsula) and Jocelyn Alba (Orange Coast) are also expected to compete for a Top 5 slot. A dominant Mt. San Antonio College team is highly favored.
Featured in the 61st 3C2A men’s four-miler at 11 a.m. is Tommy White of Moorpark, who won his first race of the season at the SoCal Championships with an eleven-second victory over Western State Conference rival Weston Greenelsh of Cuesta, the defending state champion. White was 14th in that race.
Luciano Roberts of San Diego Mesa was third in SoCal and has been a top contender all season. Joshua Morales (Cerritos) and Ivan Guzman (Cuyamaca) have both posted sub-25'8k performances and will be looking to bounce back from regionals to compete for a state title both individually and as a team.
In the North regional, Stephan Chapdelaine of Butte outran the competition by 20 seconds to win in 20:15 on the Woodward Park course. He will be aiming to use that course experience to win a state title. American River College teammates Cameron Mobley and Cyrus Justiniani placed second and third, respectively.
On the team side, the men’s race is wide open. Cerritos and Mt. SAC have looked dominant all season, but it was all Riverside at the SoCal Championships as the Tigers won 79-98 over the Falcons. RCC put two individuals in the Top 10 and the fastest #5 finisher. Cuyamaca was third at 121, but has the personnel to compete for a Woodward win.
SD Mesa seems to have narrowed the gap, finishing just five points behind a Mt. SAC team that appeared to have an off-day at the Naval Training Center Park course. Mesa was second through four runners and a strong showing from their fifth runner could put them in the mix.
In the North, ARC’s men edged Clovis 59-62. Like SD Mesa, the Beavers will need a strong showing from their fifth runner to compete for the title, but their top four are as good as any. In contrast, the Crush featured an impressive 18-second spread, but will need some standout performances up front to put them in contention to win. Hartnell was third at 75.
While the men’s race is wide open, the women’s is Mt. SAC’s to lose. The mighty Mounties won 61-96 over No. 2-ranked Orange Coast and put six runners in front of every other team’s number three. OCC and defending state champ SD Mesa will be battling for a podium position along with De Anza and Hartnell from up North. De Anza has been improving all season and topped perennial power Hartnell 58-65 for the NorCal title. Depth abounds as each team has a strong top two runners and the podium positions will likely be decided by the three through five runners.
More rain is predicted for Thursday, but it’s not expected to adversely affect the race course. As surely as it takes five runners to score a team victory, a Fresno post-rain visitor is Tule Fog which usually lifts before race time.
(Woody Wilk, CCCSIA)