Cross Country Express run by Crystal Springs Uplands HS coach Albert Caruana posts rankings for the Northern California sections. Primarily covers NCS, CCS, & SJS.
Projected nxn finish based on best performance. For guys we have a potential of having barely 2 (griffin and caldwell), and a few others that could potentially finish in the top 50 assuming they perform at their best. There is a big drop off after 6th best California guy runners so it's safe to say these will probably be the guys going with 1 having an off day and not making it. Girls look amazing with a potential of 4 all Americans and Sadie and Riley are close to the #1 girl in the country right now.
Sadie Englehardt- #2 (26th last year) Rylee Blade- #4 (76th last year) Chiara Dailey - #8 Hanne Thomsen - #15 (24th last year) Abigail Errington - #24 Summer Williams - #30 (82nd last year) Millie Bayles - #38
This list can’t be right because you have Broen Holman at #26 when he finished 26th last year.
Some people actually finish higher as Juniors, believe it or not.
Holman is in our league and I don't think he's going to finish lower this year though. The race in D4 between him and Fitchen Young will be pretty good and may produce the fastest times of the day.
1. Griffin Kushen (Tesoro): 193.4 2. Trey Caldwell (De La Salle): 192.97 (193 to highball) 3. Aydon Stefanopoulos (Los Gatos): 190.53 4. Tyler Daillak (Paso Robles): 190.1 5. Dylan Flores (Glendora): 188.17 6. JR Lesher (Hueneme): 187.63 7. Hunter Hannah (Matilda Torres): 183.87 8. Alijah Murillo (Branham): 183.8 9. Aidan Antonio (Woodbridge): 183.2 10. Jackson Stream (Vacaville): 182.67
Division 3: 1. Miles Cook (SHCP): 187.73 2. Zion Ortiz (Burroughs Ridgecrest): 187 3. Evan Noonan (Dana Hills): 186 4. Oliver Clippinger-Zimmerman (Thousand Oaks): 184.67 5. Liam Miller (South Torrance): 184.23 6. Josiah Bowman (Sage Creek): 182 7. Oliver Hunter (Dana Hills): 181.60 8. Andres Lomeli (Kimball): 179.73 9. Andrew Quast (West Torrance): 178 10. Nate Griffin-Yeh (Las Lomas)? (Explanation: Couldn't find anyone to fill the 10th spot in D3. Given past times and recent performances, Yeh seems to be a solid pick)
Division 4: 1. Broen Holman (Sonora): 192.53 2. Eli Fitchen-Young (Santa Cruz): 187.67 3. Auge Martin (Saint Francis): 187.33 4. Noel Huato (Del Oro): 182 (I am pretty sure Del Oro is D4) 5. Christian Yoder (Oaks Christian): 181.57 6. Max Douglas (Corona Del Mar): 180.67 7. Taye Newman (Jserra): 180.03 8. Cooper McNee (Oaks Christian): 179.5 9. Bradley Arrey (Jserra): 178.17 10. Callum McBride (Albany): 177.5
Division 5: 1. Landon Pretre (Menlo): 190.83 2. Olly O Conner (Viewpoint): 187.33 3. Eyan Turk (Woodcrest Christian): 185.8 4. Ben Bouie (CSUS) 5. Ryan Fitzpatrick (Nueva): 181.67 6. Theo Udelson-Nee (Wildwood): 179 7. Tarik Baker (CSUS) 8. Will Hauser (Menlo): 178.73 9. Henry Hauser (Menlo) 10. Blake Bay (Fresno Christian)
I do feel guys like Noonan and Bouie should be higher. Guys like Baker, H Hauser, and Bay definitely have a shot at making podium as of recent races.
Del Oro is D3. That takes care of your "who do I put in #10" conundrum.
Some races start while previous races are still going. Thoughts on that?
That always happens with Mt Sac, and I don't think they've ever had a problem. They only run into each other near the end, and it's only the slowest runners left on the course, so there aren't big packs that you have to pass or something.
Division 4: 1. Chiara Dailey (La Jolla): 155.6 2. Summer Wilson (Irvine): 147.67 3. Maya De Brower (La Canada): 142.23 4. Sophie Polay (Jserra): 132.07 5. Chloe Elbaz (Jserra): 128.43 6. Hayden Kroger (Jserra): 128.4 7. Reese Holley (Jserra): 127.37 8. Lindsey Billotte (Coastal Academy): 125.67 9. Kaylah Tasser (Jserra)? 10. Ava Decleve (Scotts Valley)? (Tasser and Decleve are left from last season, minus Brynn Garcia since we haven't seen her since Bob Firman)
Division 5: 1. Ayanna Hickey (Bishop's School): 130.33 2. Amelia Sarkisian (Brentwood): 128.33 3. Anna Salter (CSUS) 4. Ella Mogannam (Lick Wilmerding) 5. Clara Riddle (Immanuel)? 6. Caroline Chang (Lick Wilmerding)? 7. Olivia Teates (Francis Parker)? 8. Ariella Llorens (Francis Parker)? 9. Sophia Nichol (SF University)? 10. Mikele Jopson (John Adams Academy)? Not educated on D5 girls aside from a few individuals. The rest are based on returns from last season.
Anyone notice redondo union's 1-7 all siting at 16:10.3. They look pretty ready and eager to go. The first two races they had were quite good, then they fell off of badly. Maybe they will come back?
Anyone notice redondo union's 1-7 all siting at 16:10.3. They look pretty ready and eager to go. The first two races they had were quite good, then they fell off of badly. Maybe they will come back?
Tomorrow the SJS has their meet at Willow Hills. Holman/Jesuit Boys/Whitney and Oak Ridge Girls will be the most notable people to follow. Course runs 30-40 seconds slower than woodward.
What are the chances Vacaville make it to podium at state or potential NxN bid in the future? They’re return 5 of there 7 next year. Scorers being 4 Sophmores, 1 Freshman, and 2 Juniors. They would be led by Sophomore Cooper Stream who ran 15:14 (older brother ran 15:10 this year).
Returning times (as of now): 15:14, 15:50, 16:19, 16:23, 16:25, 16:32, 16:33
CCS Finals on Saturday at the Crystal Springs XC course in Belmont. Over the last few years, CCS XC has risen from an arguably mediocre section over the last two decades, especially on the men's side, into an absolute powerhouse with several nationally-competitive athletes since around 2017. I’ll be putting out division previews for each division whenever I feel like writing, starting with divisions 1 and 2.
CCS League finals merge, with a conversion for the Pinto Lake course run by SCCAL athletes:
D1 B: The D1 boys race is gonna come down to a two-team firestorm between Mountain View and Bellarmine. Mountain View goes in supremely confident after running the 14th-fastest team time in course history at their league finals and looks to avenge missing the state meet by 1 point last year, but perennial power Bellarmine is always competitive. With only one non-Bellarmine/Mountain View athlete being inside the top 35 of the CCS league merge, there is a real chance 14 of the first 15 runners in the D1 race are all from those two schools. The individual race is far too close to call, but defending champion Shrey Chettiar is probably the betting favorite.
D1 G: The girls' side will likely be a two-team battle between Mountain View and Evergreen Valley, but Carlmont and Menlo-Atherton follow closely behind. Historically an extremely competitive division on the girls side, D1 has been reduced greatly by the recent division realignments. Nora Carino of Evergreen Valley is the individual favorite.
D2 B: D2 boys has become significantly more competitive following the aforementioned realignments, and this year should show it. Los Altos comes in as the favorite for the team title following a strong showing at their league meet, but Los Gatos could easily challenge, with Aydon Stefanopolous, who needs no introduction, being the overwhelming favorite for the individual championship. The race for the state meet spots promises to be eventful, with Los Gatos, Branham, Los Altos, St Francis, Piedmont Hills, Lynbrook, Gunn and Leigh Palo Alto all within the top 20 of the 111-team league merge.
D2 G: If you thought the boys side was competitive, the girls race is significantly faster by comparison, especially on the individual side. St Francis, Los Altos, Los Gatos, Palo Alto, and Piedmont Hills all make appearances in the top 10 of the league merge, promising a true battle for the state meet spots. St. Francis comes in as the overwhelming favorite for the team championship following a third-place trophy at the Clovis invitational. Evie Marheineke of Archbishop Mitty is the individual favorite after an 18:00 run at her league championship, but 4:44 miler Kinga Czajkowska will be following close behind, not having been challenged for much of this season after sitting out for an injury. Zanetto of St Francis, Bharadwaj of Palo Alto, and Pickett of St Francis all come in with times under 18:20, and will look to challenge the 18-minute barrier at CCS.
CCS Finals Preview - continued:
D3 B: Despite missing 4:07 miler and defending CCS D3 champion Carson Hedlund, the race for the D3 team and individual titles looks as impressive as ever. Miles Cook, a 4:08 miler during track has been on an absolute tear this season, running a 9:00 3200, 15:00 at the Clovis invitational and 14:56 at his league finals, and looks poised to take down his teammate Cam Gregg and St Ignatius challenger Trey Wright, who both come in with times under 15:20. St. Ignatius is the heavy favorite for the team title, and Sacred Heart will likely take the second state meet spot, coming in with a team time nearly 2 minutes faster than challenger Aptos.
D3 G: The team title shouldn’t be particularly close - St. Igantius is far and clear of any other team challengers in the division, and should take it home with their gap time of 28 seconds, the best out of any girls team in the section. 2-time defending champion Kylie Hoornaert of Prospect is the overwhelming favorite for the individual title, coming in with a season's best of 18:06.
D4 B: Defending champions Archbishop Riordan look unlikely to repeat, with a Santa Cruz team led by Eli Fitchen-Young, a returning 19th-place NXN finisher strong contenders for the title, though true predictions are up in the air with Carmel and Mills both next to Santa Cruz in the merge.
D4 G: The D4 girls title will come down to a close duel between Mills and Scotts Valley, with a potential upset for one of the state meet spots by San Lorenzo Valley. Individual favorite Miya Cheng, who improved by 3 minutes on Crystal Springs in one year, will look to lead her team to victory against a historically dominant Scotts Valley team that has seen numerous talent over the last few years.
D5 B: One of the fastest races at the state meet this year could be the D5 boys race, and the CCS finals race will be a small preview of that. Menlo school introduced themselves to the state by running the fastest California team time at the Woodbridge invitational, and their close-knit pack led by nationally-ranked runner Landon Pretre will be difficult to beat - but don’t underestimate Crystal Springs Uplands, who always peaks at the right time, led by 4:06 miler Benjamin Bouie will make the fight for the individual title one of the best of the day. Watch for Nueva and the King’s Academy to claim the last 2 state meet team spots.
D5 G: On the girls side, Crystal Springs Uplands, the number 5 team in the merge, appear to be the heavy favorites with no other D5 team close. One the individual side Brooke Oliviera of Castilleja is the favorite for the crown, coming in with a seed time of 18:10 and will likely look to challenge the 18 minute barrier tomorrow. Ariya Kaushek and Anna Salter of Menlo and Crystal Springs Uplands respectively will each look to lead their teams to state meet spots.
This post was edited 3 minutes after it was posted.
Some races start while previous races are still going. Thoughts on that?
I don't remember offhand what they typically do for CIF finals but this is the way that they've done it at the Mt sac cross country invite. Once the runners in the prior race pass the air strip they start the next race. The alternative is to wait for each race to finish which would add approx. 10-20 minutes per race onto the race day. It cuts off part of each race from the HDRunners live stream but that can't be helped under the current race structuring.
Some races start while previous races are still going. Thoughts on that?
I don't remember offhand what they typically do for CIF finals but this is the way that they've done it at the Mt sac cross country invite. Once the runners in the prior race pass the air strip they start the next race. The alternative is to wait for each race to finish which would add approx. 10-20 minutes per race onto the race day. It cuts off part of each race from the HDRunners live stream but that can't be helped under the current race structuring.
They delayed races a little bit, waiting for Slow racers coming down toward the crossover at the air strip yesterday. I saw quite a few runners from previous races get in the way of fast runners in the next race. Slow runners need to be taught to run outside the tangents to stay out of the way of the top runners in the next races.
I don't remember offhand what they typically do for CIF finals but this is the way that they've done it at the Mt sac cross country invite. Once the runners in the prior race pass the air strip they start the next race. The alternative is to wait for each race to finish which would add approx. 10-20 minutes per race onto the race day. It cuts off part of each race from the HDRunners live stream but that can't be helped under the current race structuring.
They delayed races a little bit, waiting for Slow racers coming down toward the crossover at the air strip yesterday. I saw quite a few runners from previous races get in the way of fast runners in the next race. Slow runners need to be taught to run outside the tangents to stay out of the way of the top runners in the next races.
This is CIF prelims rather than a 10,000 meters on the diamond league. The range in skills of runners that qualify to run this weekend is massive. In many instances this might be the only time or one of the few times during their high school cross country careers where they will be overtaken by another race.
I doubt that the guy that got passed by Rylee Blade yesterday or others that will be overtaken today want to get in the way of runners in other races. Dude just wanted the race to be over.