Even from the opening gunshot, Saturday’s Monterey Bay League cross-country championship at Salinas’ Toro Park was Vanessa Estrada’s to lose.
And that wasn’t going to happen for the San Benito senior. Estrada’s last race at Toro Park was a magical one, as she ran away from the field and set a personal best time of 17:58, helping the Balers capture their second-straight Avis Kelley trophy, which is awarded to the MBL’s best overall team.
The time was more than enough – by nearly a a full minute and half – to win her third consecutive league championship and first in the MBL.
“I felt really good,” she said. “I’m excited. I feel like I can bring more to the plate for CCS. I’m ready for it. I just want to get more training in. I really hope my teams comes with me. I know they are trying hard. I know they can.”
Estrada blew away the field from the onset, taking a quick lead before the first turn. Her lead only extended from there, as Estrada ran by herself for nearly the entire three miles.
“That’s a big PR (personal record) for her,” SBHS head coach Jess Morales said. “Vanessa is going to go to CCS ready to win it.”
Estrada, though, wasn’t the only Baler to have a strong showing Saturday, as San Benito won two individual championships (Estrada and Steven Velarde) and a league title from the girls squad.
Sophomore Amy Quinones also stunned the crowd, coming on strong in the final mile to take second place behind teammate Estrada. Quinones (19:22) sprinted down the final stretch to pass Salinas’ Malena Grover to give the Balers the overall title.
“It was great knowing that I passed all those Salinas girls and finished strong with the team,” Quinones said. “It’s a good feeling. It shows that even though we have a small team we are still the team with the most heart and we are proud of that.”
Thanks to the strong finish, the Balers edged Salinas (38-61) in the overall standings with five finishers in the top 15. Senior Maura Forbush also ran well for the Balers, placing ninth with a time of 20:09. Anjelica Collins’ 11th place finish (20:43) and Bernadette Forbush’s 15th place finish (21:12) rounded out the Balers’ top times.
On the boys side, the Balers couldn’t hold off Alisal in the overall standings, but Velarde won the individual championship with ease, winning by more than 30 seconds.
Velarde (15:55) broke the 16-minute for the first time to set a new career record heading into the section championship. The finish is something he hopes to duplicate, he said.
“It’s a great accomplishment,” he said. “A lot of guys always talked about breaking 16. It’s a goal I wanted to do. It’ll help me out a lot in CCS. I’m trying to go to state with that time. I know that I can hit it.”
The win caps off a great season for Velarde, who placed no worse than fifth place all year. He took first in every MBL race during the year, finishing 5-0.
“It kind of forces me to push myself to the expectations of others,” he said. “I would always hear, ‘oh Steven is running the race. Steven is No. 1.’ I have to push myself to their expectations. I have to keep trying to my best.”
The Balers could only finish with two runners in the top 10 despite a reshuffled lineup. Ricardo Esqueda placed sixth overall with a time of 16:51 to help San Benito earn a second-place finish in the MBL standings.
Javier Azcona (17:25), Matthew Reikowski (17:30) and Johnny Corral (18:09) rounded out the Balers times.
The finish now gives the Balers confidence entering the CCS championship on Nov. 9. Both Estrada and Velarde will be searching for a state championship berth.
