In the 5:30 a.m. darkness on Friday morning, the girls and boys cross country teams boarded the bus for the trip to Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, CA to compete in the CIF Southern Section prelims. The girls raced first at 8:30 a.m. For the second time this year, they tackled the legendary switchbacks and Reservoir Hill before finishing on the track in the Mt. SAC stadium. In this inspiring setting, the girls demonstrated significant improvement over their times from the Mt. SAC Invitational, collectively cutting nearly six minutes from their combined times. Carissa King led the team, finishing 28 out of 95 runners. Congratulations to Carissa, Sarah, Peyton, Crystal, Ariella, Ellie, and Hope for an encouraging conclusion to an outstanding season.

The road to the CIF Division 5 finals is long and challenging, but it has been a goal of the current junior and senior boys for over two years. To qualify, the team needed to place fourth or better in the 12-team field in heat 3. Success would secure their spot among the 16 teams advancing to the finals, with four teams from each of four heats earning the privilege to compete again on Saturday, November 23, at Mt. SAC’s hilly three-mile course.

The boys were ready–their race began just before 10 a.m. Known for their disciplined and strategic pacing, it was no surprise that the live results showed them outside the top four teams after the first mile, sitting in sixth place, 29 points behind fourth and 65 points behind third-place Webb—a team they had to beat. At the mile marker, Alec Fabery stood out, running in fifth place with the leaders as they ascended the switchbacks. By the top of the hill, he had moved into third, and by the next checkpoint, he was in first, leading a major race for the first time in his life. Meanwhile, his teammates made critical passes, setting the stage for a dramatic team effort.

At the two-mile mark, Alec maintained his lead while the team closed the gap, reducing their score by 43 points and moving into fourth place, just five points ahead of Webb. Alec went on to win the race in an outstanding time of 16:51, but the team standings were yet to be decided. Over the next few minutes, the rest of the team continued to pass runners, with all six achieving personal records on this challenging course. Alex Saade placed 14 out of 87 runners, with Isaiah Bergara finishing close behind in 18th. Angel Rios followed in 29th place, while freshmen Max Ceballos and Christian Petraila placed 40th and 41st, respectively, each improving their times on this course by more than two minutes. Joe Riviera rounded out the team with another personal record.

Together, their efforts not only secured a spot in the top four but propelled them to an unexpected third-place finish. By achieving their goal of qualifying for the CIF finals, the unranked boys team defeated two ranked teams: No. 6 and No. 11 in Division 5. The division includes 150 small schools with enrollments of 600 or fewer students. Heritage Christian will be one of the 16 remaining teams competing in the Division 5 finals race on Saturday at 11 a.m.

Congratulations to our boys as their remarkable season continues! A special thanks to the alternate runners and team members for their support on Friday, as well as to the parents, family members, athletic director Mike Johnson, and trainer Dave Gloria, whose cheers and encouragement inspired the teams.