Girls cross country: Blast from the past

Joseph Boo

COSTA MESA - If Costa Mesa High’s girls cross country team is going

to return to its past success, it helps to have a couple of runners from

those times.

Two juniors, Eileen Bello and Cindy Tran, shared some of the success

of Mesa’s team two years ago. That group placed fifth in the CIF Southern

Section Division IV and boasted 1998’s Daily Pilot female athlete of the

year Jamie DeNoewer.

But Bello and Tran didn’t run cross country last year, and they’ll

have to get back in sync. How fast they can regain their cross country

prowess is the key for a young Mustangs team that only returns one

varsity runner from last year.

“Not many are returning,” Mesa Coach Eric Davies admits. “But we’re

jelling a lot better than last year, and that will help them.”

Senior Lorena Galdamez and sophomore Cara Doone are the two returners

and they are expected to lead this year’s squad. But Bello, who opted for

volleyball last season, has emerged as the lead runner so far, according

to Davies. More importantly, Bello and Tran, who played tennis last year,

should help with their experience.

“Experience definitely pays off,” Davies said. “They know what will

happen at the start, who to focus on and where to go.”The rest of the

team is pretty young. Sophomores Lyndsay Gravis and Danielle Williams ran

track last season, but both will run their first cross country race this

season.

Three freshmen, Christine Bjelland, Uyen Mai and Stephanie Clements,

are starting their cross country career this year.

With the majority of the team so young, Mesa’s season will rest on on

how much Doone, Bello and Tran can guide the rest of the runners.”The

worse thing you can do is to go out like a rabbit and have everybody pass

you at the end,” Davies said. “They’ll have to learn to work with

somebody, whether it’s an opponent or a teammate. Even some track

experience will pay off for our younger runners.”

Costa Mesa girls cross country

Coach: Eric Davies

Eileen Bello Jr.

Christine Bjelland Fr.

Stephanie Clements Fr.

Cara Doone So.

Lorena Galdamez Sr.

Lyndsay Gravis So.

Uyen Mai Fr.

Cindy Tran Jr.

Danielle Williams So.