By Preston Thue
Staff Writer
The last time the Mira Costa cross country team made it to the California Interscholastic Federation State Championship, it was 2011 for boys and 2013 for girls. This year, both teams qualified and placed in the top 10.
The boys and girls cross country teams competed in the State Championship meet on Nov. 18 at Woodward Park in Fresno. The boys placed fifth out of 23 schools, and the girls placed ninth out of 23 schools.
“This was the coolest race that I have ever raced in,” senior Amanda Han said. “There was amazing energy, and I am so proud of my teammates.”
The race started off on an open field that funneled into a narrower path. The end of the race was tough because there were a lot of small hills that made the last few minutes strenuous, junior Melia Chittenden said.
“This race gave everyone on the team an opportunity to run the state championship course,” senior Ethan Williams said.
According to Williams, during the boys race, he and junior Caleb Llorin had planned to stay next to the top three runners from Torrance. At the end of mile one, the Mustangs were in third place, but the race proved to get more challenging.
“The race was super competitive,” Williams said. “We all tried to stay together, which worked out in the end.”
Senior Ty Garrett finished at 15:44 and got 26th place, the boys’ best performance. Williams got the second best Costa time and placed 39th at 15:57. The previous course record for Costa runners, 16.00, was beaten by both Williams and Garrett.
“It was great to see our team perform alongside the best runners in the state,” Williams said.
According to Chittenden, the first mile of the race was fast-paced, and the course was different from any course they have raced on before. In order to avoid getting stuck behind the other runners, she started out at a sprint.
“When the gun went off, there was pretty much an explosion of pent up energy that all the runners used to fight their way to the front of the pack,” Chittenden said. “After that, it was just a matter of finding a pack that was going at the right pace.”
Chittenden placed eleventh overall, with a time of 18:01, which was the top time for the Costa girls cross country team.
“I can’t say I’m disappointed with the outcome,” Chittenden said. “Our goal for the past year has been to get to State, so the fact that we accomplished this was rewarding in itself.”
The boys finished the season as Bay League champions, going 3-0. Although the girls placed close to the top in almost every race, they finished the season 0-3 in the Bay League.
“We have been working hard for 23 weeks with our one goal being to make it to the state meet,” Han said. “I’m on top of the world.”
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