Chico, CA -- The 2013 Championships took place in the Hooker Oak Recreation area where yours truly designed a 1.15 mile loop course that brought the racers by the fans twice per loop. With 3-4 loops of racing in store, those fortunate enough to be racing on Saturday enjoyed plenty of support during the 6 and 8k runs. Chico XC Sponsor Saucony also had supplied the hosts with some decorative fencing to create a great finish stretch, and a finish banner that hung over the eventual end to each race. The layout was pristine and the crowd was Amazing. The stage was set for a great morning of Championship racing.

Women's 6K: The women's eventual victory was far from a "sure thing" as the same UCSD squad that ran us to the wire at the Triton Invite two weeks ago (we won by only 2 points) would come to Chico with a sense of renewed belief that they could potentially upset the hometown 'Cats. To make matters even more dicey for the 'Cats, usual top-7 runner Jordan Walsh had a tendon flare up on Tuesday and would be a last minute deletion from the CCAA roster, and early season #2-#3 runner Quetta Peinado would also not be competing for the 'Cats due to a shin issue. If we were to win on Saturday we needed some folks to step up and match the intensity and efforts of their competition, otherwise we could potentially fall to UCSD or Stanislaus on a given day.

Having learned a lesson from the near loss at Triton several weeks prior, the Chico women established themselves among the top 1/3 of the field, and then set out to defend their turf. Pre race favorite Ayla Granados operated near the front of the lead group in the early going, while teammate Sara Mikesell ran several strides behind, marking some of the other top seeds in the field. Jessie Varela and Rebekah Bahra also ran strong among the top 15-20 as the leaders approached the mile.

In the pre-race talk on CCAA eve yours truly spoke of how the women's team ran a near perfect race in 2010 when the championships took place at Legg Lake Park in Whittier. The Wildcat women that year ran strong early, but really did a great job of separating themselves in the final half of the race, eventually putting their entire top-9 across the line among the first 10 finishers. Although the '13 group had no illusions of matching that epic performance, they did show that they were willing to use the same tactic to the best of their abilities on Saturday. As the race flowed through the three loops of Hooker Oak Park, and with hundreds of screaming Chico fans lining the course, the hometown ladies methodically moved through the field decreasing the team score with each passing kilometer. During the final loop in a planned move Granados struck to the front of the pack for good while teammate Mikesell moved into fourth position. As Granados glided away from the pack Mikesell moved by former HS State champ Sabrina Lopez (CSLA) and drew a bead on Stanislaus' Rachel Naranjo.

One of the biggest surprises of the day was the awesome run of Jessie Varela who's battled health issues all season, leaving the 2012 CCAA 10k champ shy of her usual capabilities. On Saturday Varela looked great throughout and teammate Bekah Bahra piggybacked this effort as the two put distance on a number of athletes who were overzealous in the early going. In fact the entire Chico pack moved up substantially in the final kilometer of the race. And as the lead bike appeared with 500 meters remaining, the hometown fans were ecstatic to see Ayla Granados still running in the front. Following closely in second now just 5-10 seconds back was teammate Sara Mikesell who was turning the screws on the tiring Naranjo of Stanislaus. The two 'Cats would close well, eventually claiming first and second places overall.

Not far behind Jessie Varela and Bekah Bahra claimed 6th and 7th places respectively. Another pleasant surprise for the 'Cats was the official Chico debut of Haley Kroll who only started running in September after a 4 month injury layoff. Kroll was penciled into the Wildcat line-up only hours before the race, (due to the loss of Jordan Walsh). Kroll ran a solid effort from start to finish and closed out the 'Cats scoring with her 13th place effort. Following just a second behind was another late addition to the 'Cats line-up McCall Habermehl. The RS Frosh was arguably the 'Cats #25-30 runner in 2012, but today she would place 15th in the CCAA Championships, while earning the final All CCAA award! Amazing! Bailey Henshaw and Sadie Gastelum would give the 'Cats 8 of the first 18 finishers while each finished better than UCSD's #2 runner on this day!

With their backs against the wall this group of women stepped to the plate in front of a frenzied home crowd and added to the growing legacy that is Chico State Cross Country. The women have now won 6 straight CCAA titles, and 10 of the past 12. Ayla Granados adds her name to an elite list of 'Cats who also won CCAA Individual titles (Jennifer James, Alia Gray, Kara Lubieniecki, and Mary Torres). The women will now prepare to tackle the Alaska Anchorage squad that is currently ranked #1 in the West Region. The West regional is in Spokane, WA on Saturday November 9. The top 5 squads from the regional race will earn a return trip to Spokane for the NCAA Championships on Nov. 23rd.

Men's 8K: The Chico State men have flirted with the magical perfect score on several occasions. In fact in 2010 and 2011 the 'Cats scored 16 points and the "stick lodged in the Wildcats' spokes" in both cases was Pomona's Ryan Carrell. Making the storyline going into Saturday's run even more interesting was the fact that Carrell would be back for his final CCAA race, and he would be joined by his twin brother John who is of equal ability and had transferred into Pomona from nearby Cal State Fullerton. Going into Saturday's race all of the Wilcats were aware that they would need to dispatch the Brothers Carrell to have a chance at the sweep. Of course there was also SF State's Bruk Aseffa who placed 3rd in the 2012 CCAA Championship race. Having had some time to reflect on the eventual 15 point run I would have to say that the hometown crowd definitely gets the assist on the CCAA's first men's perfect score.

As the gun sounded the 'Cats assembled toward the front of the lead pack with a smattering of athletes from other teams mixed in. With 4 full loops and a small finish loop in front of them there was no reason for the 'Cats to do anything overzealous in the opening stages of the race. Cal Poly Pomona served notice as a team that they were ready to race as their entire top-4 including the Carrell brothers ran among the lead group.

As the athletes finished a loop of action all of the favorites were among the leaders including all 10 of the Chico runners. During the second loop a group of 15ish clearly separated themselves from the pack and it was evident that the eventual top 10 was most likely encased in this elite group. With 7 'Cats in the mix and running near the front of the pack, the potential sweep was very much in play. During the third lap the pack strung out as victims of the pace fell from the lead group. Chico's RS frosh Aaron Mora was the first 'Cat to lose traction from the group.

With one lap to go the lead pack was down to 8 with Chico's Isaac Chavez, Alfonso Cisneros, Phil Graber, Dayne Gradone, Aaron Thomas, Johnny Sanchez, and the Brothers Carrell. Sensing a potential sweep the crowd was loud and intense and the 'Cats received a well needed boost of adrenaline as they entered the fourth and final lap.



As the lead bike came back into view appeared in the distance one by one, Wildcats fell in line behind it. As they ran down the straightaway with ¼ mile remaining the 'Cats ran 1-6 with the Carrell brothers looking quite defeated in 7th and 8th. As the men approached the final turn in front of hundreds of screaming spectators they began to look around and realize that the sweep was happening And they could enjoy the final stretch. Easing up to collect as a group Isaac Chavez, Aaron Thomas, Alfonso Cisneros, and Johnny Sanchez smiled and ran easily as teammate Phil Graber a walk-on from Chico HS and Butte College caught the group. The toughest part of the final straightaway for the 'Cats was figuring out who should take the title. I'm not sure a consensus was ever reached, as nothing here was scripted, but Senior Aaron Thomas' torso hit the plane first, making him the 2013 champion. The entire 5 had crossed the line within 1.5 seconds, and teammate Dayne Gradone who'd been sick much of the week added to the joy with his 6th place finish. The Carrell brothers would finish in 7th and 8th respectively and Chico's #7 Aaron Mora would take 9th overall. A pair of Geoff's (Hull and Bogan) would take 14th and 15th for the 'Cats, each earning their first All CCAA awards. The only casualty this day for the Chico crew was Alex McGuirk who had been a part of the 'Cats sweep just two weeks previous in San Diego. Alex' calf had acted up in the days leading up to the race and was troublesome throughout Saturday's run. He held on to finish 26th respectively.

While taking the individual title Aaron Thomas becomes the sixth different Wildcat to win the title in the past 6 years. A Chico State Wildcat has won the CCAA title in 9 of the past 13 championship runs and of course the 'Cats have now won 12 titles in a row. In fact the 12th title moves Chico State past Cal Poly SLO on the all time titles won list, as SLO won 11 trophies during their 28 years in the CCAA.

It's hard to describe just how special the men's finish was given all of the fans and supporters who had made the trip to Hooker Oak to watch our team race. The excitement in the air rivaled any NCAA competition that I've witnessed, and to enjoy a perfect 1-6 sweep in front of such a great crowd was something this coach will never forget. For those who came out to support this weekend, Thank You SO much, as this was without question my most memorable moment in the sport to date.

The 'Cats now turn their attention on Spokane and taking on the west region in two weeks. Alaska Anchorage will most likely offer the biggest test for the 'Cats, but the Chico crew will enter the race as heavy favorites to win their 10th regional in 12 years. Of course the Top-5 men's teams will head to Spokane two weeks later to tackle the NCAA's best on the same layout. Stay tuned!