Breakers step up to win league title
ORANGE — On paper, it didn’t seem like much would stand between the Laguna Beach High girls’ cross country team and its pursuit of another Orange Coast League crown.
Every team has its challenges, though, and the Breakers were no exception.
Faced with nagging injuries throughout the season, the Breakers fought through and came up golden when it mattered most.
Laguna Beach pushed its scoring five across in the first eight runners to top Costa Mesa, 24-50, in the Orange Coast League Finals on Wednesday at Irvine Regional Park.
Senior Ana Kelly won the race in 18:24 for the Breakers. She pulled away from Godinez’s Swemicarely Avendano (18:58) as the two ascended the hill in the final mile.
Having company for most of the race helped Kelly. Teammate Bella Fonk ran with the lead trio for a good portion of the race. Kelly added that it was comforting to have her coach, Steve Lalim, riding the pace bicycle.
“I just felt like I was on a run with him,” Kelly said. “I was like, ‘I don’t need to stress about this. I’m just on another run. I can do it.’”
Laguna Beach’s victory was not surprising, but if one were to look at the Breakers at a glance based on last season, the frontrunners might be.
Junior Grace La Montagne was the defending league champion, but Achilles tendinitis kept her out for her entire sophomore track season and hindered her training for cross country. It was a struggle for La Montagne to stay in the lineup, though she finished seventh in Wednesday’s race.
Meanwhile, Kelly had just one season of varsity experience entering her senior year.
“We’ve been battling a lot of injuries this season,” Kelly said. “At one point, everyone on the varsity team was injured, and we were nervous about this season’s outcome.”
As it turned out, Laguna Beach would be just fine, capturing its fifth consecutive league title. Molly Cohn and Sabrina Flagstad completed the scoring five for the Breakers.
“I think the fact that we were able to bounce back speaks to our mental strength versus our physical strength,” Kelly continued. “Regardless of our injuries, our mind and body are one.”
Costa Mesa received top 10 performances from freshman Diane Molina (fourth) and seniors Holly Reiland and Bridget Devlin.
Estancia’s Dafne Garduno placed 11th in 20:22.
On the boys’ side, Costa Mesa’s Elliot Hachac entered as the heavy favorite.
The senior was the runner-up in last year’s league finals, and he honored his status as the projected winner by taking the race in 15:18.
After the race, Hachac appeared to be trying to shake off the weight of those expectations, shrugging his shoulders with his arms crossed.
“I have that pressure to not disappoint anyone and just go out there and win,” Hachac said. “Everyone expected me to win, so you feel that pressure. I tried to stay calm and go out there and win.”
The Mustangs’ boys’ team was attempting to win its first league title since 1996. They had beaten Godinez on a sixth-runner tie-breaker in the league preview meet, but the Grizzlies had other ideas in the finals.
Juan Pedroza, Angel Ramirez, Armando Gonzalez, and Roberto Arzate followed Hachac in order as Godinez placed five in the top 10 to defeat Costa Mesa, 24-46.
Grizzlies coach Rogelio Sanchez said that a couple of his runners were hurting lately, so they scaled back their workouts to keep them healthy for race day.
“We backed them off a little bit, and today they came through,” Sanchez said. “Part of it was planned. Now, today was everyone go all-out and do what you can.”
Godinez has won the boys’ team championship in each of Sanchez’s first two years as the coach.
Kevin Cortez placed sixth, and Myles Aguilar took eighth for the Mustangs.
Luc La Montagne was seventh to lead Laguna Beach, which took the Orange Coast League’s final CIF-SS Preliminaries berth with 63 points.
BOYS’ CROSS COUNTRY
Orange Coast League Finals
At Irvine Regional Park, Orange
3-mile course
Team Results
1. Godinez 24; 2. Costa Mesa 46; 3. Laguna Beach 63; 4. Saddleback 99; 5. Calvary Chapel 165; 6. Estancia 170
Individuals
1. Hachac (Costa Mesa) 15:18; 2. Pedroza (Godinez) 15:35; 3. Ramirez (Godinez) 15:39; 4. Gonzalez (Godinez) 15:48; 5. Arzate (Godinez) 15:52; 6. Cortez (Costa Mesa) 15:53; 7. La Montagne (Laguna Beach) 15:54; 8. Aguilar (Costa Mesa) 15:56; 9. Fisher (Laguna Beach) 16:08; 10. Gonzalez (Godinez) 16:09; 12. Orozco (Saddleback) 16:21; 29. Martinez (Calvary Chapel) 18:13; 30. Morales (Estancia) 18:15.
GIRLS’ CROSS COUNTRY
Orange Coast League Finals
At Irvine Regional Park, Orange
3-mile course
Team Results
1. Laguna Beach 24; 2. Costa Mesa 50; 3. Godinez 58; 4. Saddleback 112; 5. Estancia 129
Individuals
1. Kelly (Laguna Beach) 18:24; 2. Avendano (Godinez) 18:58; 3. Fonk (Laguna Beach) 19:04; 4. Molina (Costa Mesa) 19:05; 5. Cohn (Laguna Beach) 19:23; 6. Reiland (Costa Mesa) 19:29; 7. La Montagne (Laguna Beach) 19:37; 8. Flagstad (Laguna Beach) 19:52; 9. Devlin (Costa Mesa) 20:09; 10. Lopez (Godinez) 20:15; 11. Garduno (Estancia) 20:22; 18. Martinez (Saddleback) 21:28
