Estrella Mountain’s cross-country team wrapped up its regular season at the Mesa Thunderbird Cross-Country Class in Riverview Park on October 21. Seven Mountain Lion runners ran personal best times to conclude the regular season as they prepare for one more race in November.
Alyssa Fell and Jess Stewart kicked things off by competing in the women’s race with Fell finishing in 32nd place and Stewart claiming 35th in the field of 41 runners. After the race, Coach Tichenor commented, “It takes five runners to field a complete team and I look forward to adding new members to join Alyssa and Jess next year as we head into our second season of competition.”
On the men’s side, David Rodrigo maintained his position as the team’s top runner by running his fifth consecutive personal best time to capture 28th place. At one point early in the race, Rodrigo led the field of 62 runners. “He’s a courageous runner and his desire to get better as a frontrunner is noble. He’ll continue to improve because his competitive spirit and drive are so strong,” remarked Tichenor. Rodrigo improved upon his school record time to finish the race in 28:34.5.
Following Rodrigo were team captain, Brad Rowley (45th place); and Juan Olvera (46th) running their best races of the year. Eli Nieto (52nd), Charlie Fridrich (55th), David Perez (60th), and Efrain Loera (62nd) wrapped up the race, making Estrella Mountain place fifth total.
In addition to Rodrigo, Rowley, Olvera, Fridrich, Perez, and Loera also ran personal best times. “Truly, it’s gratifying to see how this team has responded to training where each race yields so many personal best performances,” noted Tichenor. “It’s a tribute to their work ethic and commitment to a training program.”
The final competition for the Mountain Lions, will be held at Mesa’s Riverview Park on Tuesday morning, November 2. The event will be the NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) Region I Cross-Country Championships, where individual and team berths will be at stake to compete in the National Championship meet in Spartanburg, South Carolina, November 13. The Region I women’s race will begin at 10:00 a.m., followed by the men’s race at 10:45 a.m.