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St. Francis Wins State Divisional Championship

First published in the Dec. 1 print issue of the Pasadena Outlook.

The St. Francis High School varsity boys’ cross-country ended its historic season by winning the State Division IV meet at Woodward Park in Fresno — the first state title in school history.
“The guys and I were extremely happy. We qualified for the state meet for the first time since 1995 last season and guys were hungry for more. They set a goal for themselves of coming back up there and competing for a title and that’s exactly what they did,” SFHS head coach Pat Donovan said.
The Golden Knights breezed through the 3-mile race, finishing with 93 points, led by senior Hayden Owen in 14th with a 15:41.0 time. Juniors Luke Metcalf (15:46.7) and Samuel Franco (15:55.5) finished 17th and 22nd, respectively, while senior Noe Barraza was 38th with a 16:20.8 time. Sophomore Auge Martin (16:31.0) claimed 51st, while sophomores Aidan Guzman (16:38.0) and Axel Gonzalez (17:09.6) finished 65th and 95th, respectively.
In another historic first, the Golden Knights captured the team’s first CIF Southern Section Division IV title at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut on Nov. 19. St. Francis scored 76 points and boasted a pair of top 10 finishers en route to qualifying for the CIF-SS State meet.
“That was the first time the school had won a CIF division title in cross-country; the best we’ve done was runners-up in 1995,” Donovan said. “We came into the season with three goals: win the Mission League, win CIF and win the state. The guys checked all three boxes off their list.”
Owen led the team with a 15:10.9 time in fifth place, while Metcalf finished 10th with a 15:32.9 time. Franco (15:55.2) claimed 18th, while Barraza (16:09.9) and Guzman (16:12.8) placed 26th and 28th, respectively. Gonzalez (16:24.5) and Martin (16:42.3) rounded out the group in 36th and 53rd, respectively.

FLINTRIDGE PREP
The Flintridge Prep varsity cross-country teams competed in the CIF Southern Section divisional finals at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut on Nov. 19.
The girls’ team placed 12th overall in the 3-mile race with 292 points. The Wolves were led by sophomore Jenna Moutes (22:06.9) in 59th, while junior Julia Bonk (22:12.4) finished 62nd. Senior Anya Rose (22:31.0) and freshman Sarah Bonk (22:42.3) claimed 68th and 69th, respectively. Senior Audrey Jung (23:58.7) and juniors Nicolle Riley (24:01.1) and Hailey Wilson (24:39.1) rounded out the group in 86th, 87th and 88th, respectively.
Meanwhile the boys’ team placed 15th overall with 273 points. The Wolves were led by freshman Declan Mansbridge in 43rd with a 17:38.1 time, while senior Bryan Taniguchi (17:30.6) and sophomore Carter Sakai (17:44.1) finished 47th and 54th, respectively. Junior Leo McDonald (18:25.0) was 81st, junior Ryan Ginn (18:39.2) claimed 88th, and juniors Kevin Martinez (21:33.1) and Evan Guyer (21:55.6) rounded out the group in 115th and 116th, respectively.

FLINTRIDGE SACRED HEART
The Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy varsity girls’ cross-country team competed in the CIF Southern Section Division IV finals at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut on Nov. 19. The Tologs finished 16th overall with 399 points.
FSHA was led by junior Annie Ramirez in 74th with a 20:46.4 time, while sophomores Mari Owen (20:52.5), Paige Perkins (21:13.1) and Alana McCann (21:19.1) placed 78th, 86th and 87th, respectively. Senior Erika Caballero (21:26.0) was 89th, while sophomores Adelina Van Dyck (21:30.6) and Abby Reichert (23:23.9) rounded out the group in 91st and 111th.

POLY
Senior Adrian Lazzi represented the Panthers as the lone runner in the CIF-Southern Section Division V finals at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut. He finished the 3-mile race 30th overall with a 17:13.1 time.

LA SALLE
Senior Alex Alvarez represented the Lancers as the lone runner in the CIF-Southern Section Division IV finals at Mt. San Antonio College. He finished the 3-mile race 16th overall with a 15:47.3 time.

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