CHICO, CA -- Three weeks ago EAL cross country team converged on the Foothill High campus to run the season's first center meet. Chico's boys were heavily favored to win but the two girls races were deemed a toss-up between the Panthers and the home team Cougars. As expected the varsity boys and JV boys races were comfortably won by Chico. Chico also took the JV girls race, overcoming Foothill putting 3 runners in the top 4, by sweeping the next four places. Then a most curious development unfolded in the varsity girls race, the entire Foothill team appeared content to let the Panthers win. Consensus at the time was that the Cougars were saving themselves for Capital Cross Challenge three days hence where they would again lock horns with the Panthers (& a large host of other teams). The strategy didn't work out so well as Foothill, after looking good initially at Haggin Oaks, faded (with the notable exception of Paige Osborne) over second half of the race to finish 6th to Chico's 4th in the invitational race.
Fast forward to this week's second and final center meet held at Bidwell Park's Hooker Oak Recreation Area. Conditions were ideal for this mid fall race with sunny skies, near calm winds with temperatures hovering in the low 80s. Both JV races saw Chico place five runners in the top seven, including race winners (Liam Sehorn for the boys, Carsen Quintero for the girls), to give the Panthers the team victory twice over runner-up Foothill.
The varsity girls race was next. Surely Foothill would not tank the race like previous center meet. Yet a half mile out, a wall of Chico runners greeted spectators clamoring up to the levee to see how the race was unfolding. Halfway through the race a lap later, saw the Panther contingent still had a modest lead over a chase pack composed mostly of Foothill runners despite using a pace not particularly taxing. The pace increased over the course's final lap but only for the Chico runners as only Foothill's Payton Osborne broke up the Panther top six and even she was content to not contend for the victory. Anyway Chico's Britta Bundy returned to the winner's circle, leading the Panther's impressive group of freshman to a surprisingly easy team win. Maybe the Cougars will run hard at this weekend's Flat SAC Invitational where both Chico and Foothill are entered. Maybe they will at the EAL Finals held at Hooker Oak on November 1 or possibly at the Northern Section Championships held on the storied West Valley course a week later.
In contrast, varsity boys race was a VERY competitive affair although the team winner (Chico) was never in doubt. Nor was the overall winner as the section's top ranked runner Charlie Giannini gapped the field early and rolled to a nearly fifty second margin of victory finishing in 15:50 on the 5K course. His time was the fastest run on the course except for Andrew Skoy's course record 15:38 set two year ago at the league championships. Behind him, were seven Chico teammates, two from cross-town rival Pleasant Valley and one each from Foothill, Enterprise and Shasta. All but three would run under 17 minutes to easily make this race the most competitive on this course since its inception in 2014. Places were very fluid among these athletes during the race, with final outcome left to the closing sprint. PV's Kyle Johnson edged teammate Donovan Freer for second. Chico's Bretten Farrell was fourth then juniors Dylan Tindall of Foothill and Nick Torres from Enterprise taking fifth and sixth all in a stretch of only three and half seconds. Chico would close out the team win taking the next six places. Only four of the top ten finishers had ever run under 17 mintues on the course prior to this race but Tindall, Torres, and Chico's Kaleb Traficante, Alan Nava and Rory Monninger added their names to this list on this day.
