Sophomore Kristen Rivera

Last Saturday, the girls cross country team rallied together to win the CIF Division III State Meet and Woodward Park in Fresno. This win marks the girls cross country seventh state title, and repeat win after winning state the previous year.

The girls finished the 5000 meter course (3.2 miles) with 76 points, ahead of rival Orange Lutheran by five points.

“This has been our dream since freshman year,” said team captains Sarah Keddington and Marissa Cummings, on winning the state meet.

Running against twenty two other teams, the girls were hungry for a win after taking second behind Orange Lutheran at the CIF Finals by three points.

“Both races were really close, the difference between those points can be a margin of one to two runners. And the course was freezing!” said team captains Sarah Keddington and Marissa Cummings.

Senior and team captain Melanie Powers lead the team with a time of 17:56 taking 3^rd. Seniors Kristina Funahashi and Ali Hummelberg ran pivotal times. Kristina Funahashi ran an incredibly fast race and was also able to beat her own PR, personal record. Ali Hummelberg saved some big points for the team by passing multiple runners on the last stretch to the finish line.

Due to their spectacular win at Fresno, the girl cross country team has been invited to run in Portland Oregon, at the Nike Cross Nationals. The girls will be competing against 22 other teams (154 athletes) at the Portland Meadows, a repurposed horse track. The man made 5k course features three loops and obstacles. Since it is in Portland, a city notorious for its rain fall, there is a possibility of adverse weather. The girls, however, have already taken this into account.

“We are expecting the course to be completely muddy, but we’re not quite so sure about the hay bales and other obstacles…” said Seniors Marissa Cummings and Sarah Keddington.

Their race is at 11:35 AM on Saturday, and they will be running as the Newport Beach XC Club of California. Click here to watch live streaming footage .

For more information visit Dystat or Nike Cross Nationals
Photo credit to Margaret Gallagher at Dyestat

CIF State Meet Results
Melanie Powers 17:56 3rd place
Kristina Funahashi 18:18 7th place
Marisa Cummings 18:27 13th place
Kristen Rivera 18:45 28th place
Ali Hummelberg 18:54 34th place
Ashlee Powers 19:00 43rd place
Sarah Keddington 19:22 72nd place

On concrete, dirt, and asphalt, the CdM Cross Country team persevered to place first in five of the six races at the Pacific Coast League Finals in Irvine Regional Park.

The course is fast and quick and virtually flat. While an overall road race, the course runs scenically through the park and woodland areas nearby. The course is further quicker due to the fact that it starts on a downhill and features only one uphill, ending with a fast downhill to finish. Due to this fact the majority of the racers were at their best. Senior Julien Crockett said on the topic of the course, “I always enjoy running on this course because of the diverse terrain, even though it can be a bit hot. It was good to see the hard work paying off for the team.”

The Girls Varsity Team placed first by a margin of 50 points over second place University, taking first, second, and third place respectively. While the Varsity Boys placed third overall, behind Beckman and University. Both teams will move on to CIF Prelims November 14 at Mt. Sac.

Times/Results (top seven finishers)

Varsity Girls (First with 20 points)
Melanie Powers: 16:59 Pacific Coast League Champion
Marisa Cummings: 17:17 2nd place
Kristina Funahashi: 17:32 3rd place
Ashleee Powers: 17:46 6th place
Shelby Perez: 18:08 8th place
Sarah Keddington: 18:20 10th place
Ali Hummelberg: 18:31

Varsity Boys (Third with 63 points)
Austin Barvin: 15:23 6th place
Blake Myers: 15:37 11th place
Sebastien Welch: 15:37 12th place
Derek Satterfield: 15:46 15th place
Alex Turney: 15:49 19th place
Peter Morris: 16:05 22nd place
Kjell Wolker: 16:06 23rd place

JV Girls (First with 21 points, won by a margin of 32 points)
Amanda Garrett: 18:54 Girls JV League Champ
Christine Light: 20:00 2nd place
Allie Garrett: 20:09 4th place
Madison Turner: 20:36 6th place
Sarah Light: 20:45 8th place
Devon Hoppe: 20:46 9th place
Rachael Somerville: 21:22 12th place

JV Boys (First with 58 points, finishing in front of Uni by two points)
Zac Asdourian: 16:33 5th place
Chris Burke: 16:47 9th place
Julien Crockett: 16:51 10th place
Sam Parks: 17:02 14th place
James Seals: 17:21 20th place
Cole Satterfield: 17:40 27th place
Miguel Rivero: 18:33 33rd place

Fresh/Soph Girls (First with 19 points, won by a margin of 37 points)
Kristen Rivera: 18:29 Pacific Coast League Champ
Darcie Marshall: 18:59 3rd place
Megan Zwerling: 18:59 4th place
Sarah Hoppe: 19:22 5th place
Sara Silverman: 19:23 6th place
Marika Gerken: 19:29 7th place
Nica Sabouni: 19:40 13th place

Fresh/Soph Boys (First with 50 points, finishing in front of San Juan Hills by three points)
Michael Keasey: 16:34 2nd place
Teddy Parks: 16:50 7th place
Jake Woodyard: 17:04 11th place
Dylan Gronendyke: 17:13 14th place
Troy Hardy: 17:21 16th place
Spencer Christoff: 17:47 26th place
Nick Furgatch: 17:52 27th place

On Saturday the boys and girls varsity cross country team dominated the Central Park Invitational, both winning first place.

Scenically located along a lake, the three mile course features asphalt, grass, dirt, and two sandy hills. According to team captain Sebastien the real struggle is the hill on mile two. “[It] hurts to walk up, much less then sprint. And the downhill is so steep that, you can only see where you end up, and not the actually slope itself,” said Sebastien in reference to the sandy hill.

The girls won with 30 points, ahead of the second place winner Yucca Mountain by 38 points. The boys won with 44 points, ahead of the second place winner Rancho Alamitos by 18 points.

Due to the SAT and possible swine-flu sickness four varsity girls runners were unable to compete along with two varsity boys runners. The sheer depth of the boys and girls teams, however, allowed both to succeed.

Despite the fact that varsity runners Ali Hummelberg, Kristina Funahasahi, Christine Light, and Allie Garret were unable to run, the girls finished with lead runners, seniors Melanie Powers and Marisa Cummings, placing first and second in 17.53 and 18.29 minutes.

On the boys side junior Austin Barvin came in first for CDM placing fifth overall with a time of 16.15 minutes. Eighth overall and coming in second for CDM, sophomore Blake Meyers finished with a time of 16.27 despite taking a wrong turn. Team captains Sebastien Welch and Sam Parks were among with those unable to race, but provided tremendous support.

The next race is the Orange County Championship on Saturday, October 17 at Irvine Park.

Other Results:
Boys Freshmen: 3rd overall
Boys Sophmore: 8th overall
Girls Fresh/Soph: 1st overall
Boys JV: 3rd overall
Girls JV: 2nd overall