Women runners get one more chance

WALNUT, CA.—The women’s cross country team gained ground on Pasadena City College, the team that stands in the way of the Huskies advancing to the postseason for the second-consecutive year.

Pasadena was 85 points better than ELAC entering the Mt. San Antonio College Relays on Oct. 16, but ELAC, short one runner, got a little bit closer. Sixty-one points closer to be exact.

The women’s cross country team took 11th place while Pasadena City College placed 10th in the 68th Annual Mt. SAC Relays 23-team community college division.

While ELAC’s individual times continue to improve, the team is consistently short team members each meet. While one cannot anticipate injuries or illness, the entire team is needed to defeat Pasadena at the SCC Championships in two weeks to have a chance to move on to the postseason.

“We are only 24 points away from going to SoCal,” said freshman Rosa Arellano (Schurr High School). “We have to beat Pasadena in two weeks at the conference finals. We are training and determined to do it.”

ELAC competed at the Mt. SAC Relays without freshman Jazmin Reyes (Alhambra), but freshman Gabrielle Trenado (Schurr) returned to the line-up.

Sophomore Viridiana Hernandez (South Gate), ELAC’s No. 1 runner, broke 20 minutes for the second time this season and finished in 19:57 minutes. She is seeded to advance to SoCal individually.

ELAC’s No. 2 and No. 3 runners, sophomore Luz Badillo (Alhambra) and Arellano respectively, are on the bubble to advance to SoCal. “But we are determined to beat Pasadena and send the whole women’s team,” said Arellano.

Badillo finished in 21:11 at while Arellano finished in 21:48. Sophomore Melissa Preciado (Bell Gardens) continues to improve her times and finished in 22:11, followed by Trenado, who ran 24:30.

Sophomore Maybell Sanchez did not score for the Huskies and finished with a time of 25:46. She edged freshman Marisol Gutierrez of Estrella Mountain Community College in the final stretch.

In other action, ELAC placed 8th at the Santa Barbara Invitational last week. Hernandez took ninth place in 22:06.

Other Huskies that scored included Badillo, Preciado, Sanchez and Ortiz. Arellano and Trenado did not compete in Santa Barbara.

The entire team must all compete in the SCC finals in order to have a chance to defeat Pasadena, either of which they haven’t done all season.

“We are close, but it’s up to the girls to do it,” said ELAC Coach Louis Ramirez. “We have the talent and two weeks to prepare.”

The Huskies final meet on paper is the SCC Championships in the Palos Verdes Estates at 2:15 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 30. The SoCal finals will be on Friday, Nov. 6 in San Diego.

story submitted by Tadzio Garcia