CIF State Championships
Woodward Park
Fresno CA
Saturday, November 30, 2024

RESULTS AT BOTTOM OF PAGE

Boys Earn 2nd State Championship with Wire to Wire Victory over Crowded Field; Girls Finish 6th to Extend Top Ten Streak

In his meet preview, California cross country prognosticator Rich Gonzalez wrote of the Boys' Division 3 Championship race, "This one's crazy!" His reasoning being that no fewer than 7 schools from across the state were capable of a title run in this "white-knuckles affair." Further adding to the suspense was his note that the Cougars had nearly been beaten in their section championships amid challenging weather a week prior; yet when it came to putting his picks in order, Gonzalez placed Campolindo at the top of his list.

As it turned out, Saturday's perfect racing conditions at Woodward Park proved just what Campolindo needed to spark a season-best performance and runaway with its 2nd state championship in team history. Showing their commitment to the endeavor, the team passed through the mile mark with a commanding lead of nearly 100 points over 2021 champion West Torrance and 2022 champion Oakdale.

The plan had been to find solid position over the 1st mile before moving up in the 2nd. However, with the aggressive start, the team found itself playing defense as Oak Park made its move in the middle of the race. By the time team scoring was calculated at the 2.1-mile mark, Campolindo's lead had narrowed to 22 points.

But the Cougars would not be denied. Fueled by a heroic effort from Cody De La Cruz (26), who moved into the #3 scoring position for the team, and a gritty final mile from Maxson Cook (25) that picked up 4 places, Campolindo held off all challengers to win by 29 points

For the 3rd race in a row, the top finisher for the boys was a new face, this time being sophomore Clark Gregory (27), who closed well enough to claim 12th place overall in a personal best of 15:25. The mark moves him to 4th all-time in school history on the course.

Caden Ehrhorn (28), the squad's most consistent performer all season, finished just off his own course best in 24th place. The squad's team time of 79:12 ranks 2nd best in program history, behind the state championship performance of 2019.

The exciting day was 1st kicked off by the varsity girls, who managed to outdo their pre-meet ranking by finishing 6th in Division 3. The effort was led by career bests from Amalia Conteras (27) and Kiona McCasland (27), who both finished under 19 minutes.

Meeran Gill (25) had her greatest high school race with a 55th place finish in 19:01. The time is a 68-second improvement over her performance at the Rough Rider Invitational on October 18. Next across the line was Anya Houston (26), who picked up her own PR on the course of 17 seconds.

BOYS' VARSITY
12 CLARK GREGORY 10 15:25
24 CADEN EHRHORN 9 15:44
42 CODY DE LA CRUZ 11 15:52
47 MAXSON COOK 12 15:57
71 GAVIN GUNN 10 16:11
103 JACK DURDEN 10 16:24
108 SIDDHARTH IYER 12 16:26

Campolindo 153, Oak Park 182, Hart 198, South Pasadena 210, Oakdale 224, Burroughs 233, Tamalpais 237, St. Ignatius 249, West Torrance 261, Agoura 281, Del Oro 288, Panderosa 347, San Luis Obispo 349, Dana Hills 358, Cathedral Catholic 383, Sacred Heart Cathedral 386, Pleasant Valley 389, Sage Creek 411, Maria Carrillo 416, Newark Memorial 422, Aptos 435, St. Augustine 464, Beyer 466, Galileo 567, Mendez 744

GIRLS' VARSITY
39 AMALIA CONTRERAS 10 18:45
43 KIONA MCCASLAND 10 18:51
55 MEERAN GILL 12 19:01
84 ANYA HOUSTON 11 19:30
103 KAITLYN KINSEY 10 19:51
109 CLAIRE ANDRZEJEK 11 20:01
112 MYKENZIE FUNG 9 20:04

South Pasadena 106, Point Loma 149, Santa Margarita 163, Cathedral Catholic 165, Oak Park 207, Campolindo 213, St. Francis 245, Yorba Linda 263, Sacred Heart Cathedral 280, West Torrance 283, Montgomery 314, Sage Creek 327, Northgate 343, Hart 349, River Valley 378, Canyon 381, Newark Memorial 402, San Luis Obispo 406, St. Ignatius 417, Del Oro 458, Chico 483, La Costa Canyon 487, Atascadero 583, Lowell 711, Verdugo Hills 791