The Anzar High cross-country team usually has one or two standout runners every year. This season that runner could be junior Angel Garcia, who ran just one race as a freshman and four a year ago. Hawks coach Faby Felix knows when she sees talent, and is hoping Garcia can complete an entire season.
“He just ran an 18:39 (over 3 miles) at Toro (Park in Salinas), and not even on (lengthy) training,” Felix said. “Angel is just one of those kids that naturally has good rhythm and good form. He started putting in the time and now has the confidence to do some great things if he puts his mind to it. He’s just growing every day.”
Anzar competed in the San Benito Invitational last weekend, with Garcia finishing third in the junior boys race in 10 minutes, 56.67 seconds. Garcia’s younger brother, Isaiah, ran a 12:00.95 to place 12th among the freshmen boys. Other top Anzar boys finishers included Luis Morales, who finished in 13:15.65 to take 23rd in the sophomore boys race, and Chris Winterbottom, who placed 28th in the same race in 14:09.17.
The Hawks didn’t have their second fastest runner at the invitational in Jacob Avila, who has a goal of running 17 minutes over a traditional 3-mile cross-country course. Avila had a solid freshman season only to be riddled by injuries as a sophomore last year.
Back and healthy, Avila hopes to stay injury-free and finish the season strong. Two years ago, Avila ran 19:39 at the Central Coast Section Championships to place 48th in the Division V race. But the 2014 season was a struggle, as Avila never hit a sub 20-minute time.
Even though Avila has never run sub 19-minutes, he’s confident he can break that barrier because of the hard work he put in over the summer. Avila said he practiced with some of the Hartnell College runners, often running twice a day. Avila also attended a running camp in Mammoth Lakes, which further fueled his passion for running.
“It’s pretty inspiring to watch and listen to pro runners,” said Avila, the younger brother of former Anzar standout Diego Avila, who won the Division V race in the 2013 CCS Championships. “When I first started running, I didn’t love it as much as I do now. What I love about running is you get whatever you put into it. You keep working harder and harder and you’ll get farther.”
Freshman Cesar Avila, the cousin of Diego and Jacob, is also expected to make an impact. Skylar Seyffert and Destiny Hansen, a pair of sophomores on the girls team, have a similar passion for running. Seyffert had a time of 17:02.89 to place 26th in the sophomore girls race, and Hansen was right behind her in a time of 17:05.45. As of last week, Felix only had two others runners on the girls team in sophomore Ella DeAmaral and junior Eliza Rojas.
Felix is hoping to fill out the roster by the end of this week, but even if it doesn’t happen, she’ll be satisfied if she can pass on her passion for the sport to a new crop of runners.
“Both the boys and girls teams are inexperienced, but that’s what makes coaching challenging and fun,” she said. “They come in raw with no training, and you see the hard work pay off for them later. There’s definitely improvement needed for all of my girls, but you can see they want it so bad. They want to listen to you and learn how to improve, and that’s great to see.”
Sometimes Felix runs with the girls and serves as a pace runner, which helps the girls understand how to nail their split times. Hansen is in her first year running on the cross-country team, having gained running experience last spring while on the track squad.
Born and raised in Utah, Hansen moved to San Jose in 2009 before settling in her current residence in Prunedale. Besides improving her times, of course, Hansen has been focusing on her breathing pattern, which would make her a more efficient runner. She also took up basketball and track last year.
“Before I got here, I’ve never really been a sporty person,” said Hansen, who was also a starter on the basketball team last year. “But it’s been really fun and I’ve got a new passion for running.”
