The San Benito cross-country team continued to run well Saturday at the 17th annual Chieftain/Spirit Classic Invitational at El Toro Park in Salinas, winning the girls race and placing two runners inside the top four during the boys race.
San Benito’s Vanessa Estrada won the girls race with a time of 18:16. It was Estrada’s second race win in two tries at El Toro Park.
Estrada finished nearly a minute faster than second-place runner Clare Peabody of Aptos (19:13). Maura Forbush just missed the top-five, finishing in sixth place with a time of 20:00.7 for the Balers.
Teammate Amy Quinones finished in ninth place with a time of 20:12. Cynthia Trujillo placed 21st with a time of 22:00 and Bernadette Forbush finished in 22nd place with a time of 22:08.
On the boys side, Steven Velarde (16:04) and Ricardo Esqueda (16:14) finished third and fourth to lead San Benito. Despite the strong running, the San Benito pair finished more than 30 seconds out of first place, as Leland’s Richard Ho finished with a time of 15:27.
No other Baler finished in the top 39 runners. Juan Gutierrez (17:52) was the next Baler to finish, crossing the finish line in 40th place. Javier Azcona (17:52) finished in 45th place for the Balers.
The Balers will travel to Alisal High at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday for the first league meet of the year.
AHS Cross-country
Led by Diego Leon and Adriana Vasquez, the Anzar cross-country team started its season on a strong note, defeating Marina, Trinity and Oakwood in the first meet of the year Thursday.
Leon finished the day with the best time, pacing the boys team with a time of 18.21 – more than a minute faster than the next runner teammate Nat Hsia-Coron.
The boys squad finished with the four best times on the day. Hsia-Coron finished with a time of 19.36. Teammates Christian Monroy (20.12) and Diego Avila (21.02) finished third and fourth for the Hawks.
On the girls side, Vasquez finished in first place with a time of 26.31, beating Trinity’s Katelyn Jezowski by nearly 30 seconds.
Anzar’s Ali Bautista (27.58) and Carly Zako (29.17) placed fourth and fifth for the Hawks.
The Hawks go on the road at 4 p.m. Thursday for a Coastal Athletic League meet at Stevenson High.
