By Rebecca Hext
Staff Writer
On September 17 in Costa Mesa the Mira Costa cross country team successfully put away rumors that they would not be a threat this year without their number one and two girls who graduated.
The typical three-mile course for this meet was much flatter than what the girls are used to racing on; however, they still came out with everything they had. Senior, Kelli Sugimoto placed in the top 15 finishers with a time of 17:02; a new personal record for herself. Behind Sugimoto was senior Jenna Tong with an impressive time of 17:27. The rest of the top five runners finished under 18:30 locking in a 5th place win for Costa girls out of 19 teams.
“Coming into this meet I was extremely excited,” Junior Yvette Sandoval said. “My legs were so tired by the last 400 and I just kept telling myself that the faster I ran, the faster I would be done.”
Although many predicted that this season would be a struggle for the girl’s team, they are obviously proving them wrong. In addition to placing 5th overall, Costa beat out Ayala and Foothill, who are currently ranked above them.
“I am so fired up right now,” head coach Renee Williams said. “We came out stronger than people were expecting us to and showed them that we are still a force to be reckoned with.”
In addition to the girls amazing performance the boys team brought home a 5th place win as well. Breaking 15 minutes for the first time, senior Adam Perez finished with a time of 14:55, placing ninth in the race overall. Following Perez, senior Zach Adler finished with a time of 15:07. The top five scorers finished under 16:00, showing that this season looks very promising for them.
“I was very nervous coming into this race,” senior Adam Perez said. “I did much better than I thought I was going to and I’m just excited to see how the team did as a whole.”
Assistant coach Mr.Calderon who has only been with the team for about two years was ecstatic about their performance. After spending all summer with the boys training them day in and day out he was very happy to see the hard work pay off.
“I am extremely proud of the team for placing so well at such a prestigious meet,” Calderon said. “It was the best I have ever seen them run; they just came out and thrived.”
Head coach Bob Fish is looking forward to a season with his boy’s team. Although they are in a tough league with powerhouses like Palos Verdes High and Redondo Union High, Fish hopes they will make it into CIF this year.
“I am very proud of the boy’s performance today,” Fish said. “Let’s just say that I’m glad I came back again to coach this year.”
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