Saddleback cross country shows out in Golden West Central Park Classic

Andre Castillo runs toward the finish line as his teammates cheer him on. Ryan Horner | Lariat

Saddleback’s Men’s and Women’s Cross Country teams competed in the Golden West Central Park Classic on Friday at Huntington Beach Central Park. The women placed fourth out of 17 schools while the men placed ninth out of 25 schools. 

After a two-week drought from competing due to meets being canceled, both teams took advantage of this most recent meet and showed it in their work ethic and results.

The women’s side was led by Danna Ibarra Canales with a first place finish in the women’s 5k run. The sophomore has started to make top finishes commonplace after coming off of a dominant track and field season in spring 2024.

“I talked to my coaches about what my race strategy was gonna be and I just showed up and executed,” said Ibarra Canales.

The race also included a strong eighth place finish from freshman Leilani Vivaldo, totaling two Saddleback women in the top ten out of 141 athletes in the field.

The men’s team had a strong performance as well from freshman Mike Ayala, leading the team and placing 30th out of 277 male athletes in the four-mile run. Despite the solid finish though, Ayala left the race seeking improvement.

“I felt good, but it was just after the hill, it kind of killed me,” said Ayala. “I just need to practice more [hills] to get better.”

Head coach Matt Sherman praised both teams’ performances at the meet, especially for being early into the season and having just come off of two weeks without competing. Sherman enjoys seeing each team improve steadily over the course of the season.

“With a hard week of training, they really rose to the occasion I think on both the men’s and women’s side,” said Sherman.

After a big week, the teams look ahead to their next meet on Friday, Oct. 4 at Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga. Coach Sherman plans to prepare his team for more future success.

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