Boys cross country: Eagles preparing for fifth straight trip to

state meet

Richard Dunn

FRESNO - As the Estancia High boys cross country team prepares for

its fifth straight trip to the CIF State Championships at Woodward Park,

Coach Charlie Appell’s squad is right where it wants to be with a No. 7

state Division III ranking.

“We’re in a relaxed area (in terms of ranking), where we can just go

play,” Appell said. “It’s someplace where we can go hide and have fun. If

we blow up (read: perform poorly), it’s not going to be a big deal.”

While the Eagles like their underdog position, it would be foolish for

the favorites to count them out, especially considering their

we-have-nothing-to-lose approach.

“They want the trip (to Fresno) and they want to bounce back a little

bit,” Appell said of his runners, who finished fourth last week in the

CIF Southern Section Division III finals at Mt. San Antonio College,

where junior Humberto Rojas, the Pacific Coast League champion, captured

the individual Division III title in 15:25.1.

Estancia’s boys, scheduled to compete in the state meet’s final race

Saturday at 1:30 p.m., will be challenged again by Barstow, the Southern

Section Division III champion.

Barstow, led by Kalan Ray, is ranked No. 1 in the state Division III

poll, followed by Valley Center of the San Diego Section, Rim of the

World, St. Ignatius, La Jolla, San Luis Obispo and Estancia.

“Barstow will be the one to beat,” Appell said. “(The Aztecs) are not

going to roll over and play dead. They’re too good.”

Estancia, which has faced all of the aforementioned teams this season

except Valley Center, will also be paced by Mike Casillas, the only

senior on the squad, juniors Geraldo Orozco and Aaron Van Geem and

sophomore Panfilo Elias. Rojas will try to become the second runner in

Estancia history to win an individual state title, following Alberto

Munoz’s 1998 state championship.

The Eagles, making their sixth visit to the state meet since Appell

took over the program in 1990, enjoyed their best finish at Woodward Park

in 1997, when they finished second in Division IV.

“It’s got to be a good year to get to the last party,” said Appell,

whose team moved up to Division III this year from Division IV, because

“we had 22 more students than last year.”

Orozco, Estancia’s third finisher in the CIF finals (36th overall in

16:49.5), has been among Appell’s most improved runners since the team

lost standout seniors Eric Lopez and Luis Segoviano because of academic

reasons.

“Geraldo was our fourth and fifth runner most of the year, but he’s

finally realized where he belongs,” Appell said.