DAILY PILOT HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE OF THE WEEK:

The phone call came at the beginning of Laura Bilder’s freshman year at Corona del Mar High. A couple questions blared from a concerned man who has become Bilder’s favorite coach.

But back then, she didn’t know what to think. She ran a few times with the CdM girls’ cross country team only to stay in shape for soccer.

“I get this phone call from this scary old man saying, ‘Where are you? Why aren’t you running?’ ” Bilder said of a call from Coach Bill Sumner. “It took me just two races to get hooked on [cross country].”

And so began, what Sumner called, “the roller-coaster ride,” for Bilder. Well, running for CdM had been like a roller coaster the past three years for Bilder. Sure there were team championships, but as an individual, Bilder dealt with some uphill battles.

Two years ago she didn’t finish the race at Mt. San Antonio College in the Division III finals of the CIF Southern Section Championships. She didn’t run at the state meet either because of a foot injury. The Sea Kings won both races. They were expected to do that.

But this year, not many anticipated CdM to win again at Mt. SAC. But Sumner believed and so did Bilder. She finished 11th in 18 minutes, 32 seconds, as the Sea Kings’ No. 2 runner helped lead CdM to its fifth straight CIF Southern Section Division III title.

This season has been Bilder’s best yet. Last year, she dealt with an ankle injury that kept her out of a few races, but that’s in the past.

“She’s been consistent for the whole year,” Sumner said. “She is steadier than the Rock of Gibraltar. She hasn’t had any bad races this year.”

Quite a difference from three years ago when soccer was her favorite sport.

“If someone had told me three years ago that I would be running under 18 minutes for a three-mile race, I would have laughed in their face,” said Bilder, whose personal record for a three-mile course is 17:36.

Bilder is not only steady for the Sea Kings, she has also been their leader. She refers to her teammates as, “My girls.” And, Sumner refers to Bilder as the team mom.

She’ll lead team cheers and will tell her girls to believe they can win. She’s been sending the same message to them as they were preparing this week for today’s CIF State Championships at Woodward Park in Fresno.

The girls shout in unison: “Rain can’t rock the house! Thunder can’t rock the house! Lightning can’t rock the house! You can’t rock the house!”

“It’s our little pump-up cheer that we do,” Bilder said. “It gets us going and we’re like, ‘We got this, we can do this.’ ”

They were doing that cheer last week before their race at Mt. SAC. Afterward, Bilder went home for a nap. She slept well knowing the Sea Kings had won the title.

Bilder called last week’s championship, the best race of her life, but she knows that a state title would top that today. She knows it’s her senior year and she wants it to the best season possible.

Aside from the winning, it’s already been great, definitely memorable. That scary old man has become more than a coach for Bilder.

“He’s like a second dad to me,” Bilder said. “He inspires his kids so much. He really looks out for us. I couldn’t ask for a better coach.”

The coach, teammates, the races, they’ve all been great memories for Bilder, who said today is bittersweet.

She’s a bit sad that it’s the final race of the season. She wants it to end with a state title.