Team prepares for big meet at Toro Park
It is said the Tri-County Athletic League Championship is
decided in the two weeks leading up to the year-end event.
It’s decided in the preparation, the training, the conditioning,
and the practice. It’s decided in the warm-up stretches, the 200-
and 400-meter dashes, and the five-mile runs.
Team prepares for big meet at Toro Park
It is said the Tri-County Athletic League Championship is decided in the two weeks leading up to the year-end event.
It’s decided in the preparation, the training, the conditioning, and the practice. It’s decided in the warm-up stretches, the 200- and 400-meter dashes, and the five-mile runs.
After a season that lasted nearly two months, league titles, bragging rights and section berths all come down to these final two weeks. After a season that saw the Haybalers lose to Salinas, the Lady Balers to Gilroy, victory in next Saturday’s TCAL Championships at Toro Park would wipe that slate clean.
“Right now, with the way they look, we’re just getting better every week,” San Benito coach Jess Morales said. “We’re not gonna try and get something the last two weeks to make a big difference, because more and more every race, they’re getting closer and better every week.”
San Benito, which finished their regular season on Monday at home to Alisal, won’t begin to taper off their training until Thursday of next week, says senior Frankie Rivera.
“But from here on out, it’s going to be some pretty tough workouts,” said Rivera on Tuesday. “Some of us are getting up in the morning and running some extra miles. So we have that, plus practice.
“[Morales] is going to add more quantity, but right now it’s all about the quality of the workout.”
The Haybalers, both the boys and girls, have been steadily increasing their performance and decreasing their times as the season has progressed.
For the boys, after a strong showing on Oct. 14 when they defeated Palma 24-31, they delivered perhaps their most impressive race of the season last Monday at Park Hill.
Although they were up against a rebuilding Alisal program, the Baler boys delivered four sub-18 minute times on the difficult and dusty terrain of Park Hill, which is perhaps the most difficult course in the TCAL and can add as much as a minute to even the most conditioned runners’ time.
Frankie Rivera (17:10), Adrian Rodriguez (17:25), Jose Castillo (17:32) and Eddie Guzman (17:48) all finished under 18 minutes, which was a first for Morales.
Previously, the last time San Benito ran at Park Hill was in mid-September against Gilroy, where only Rivera (17:48) and Rodriguez (17:51) recorded times below the 18-minute mark. At that time, Castillo (18:44) and Guzman (18:20) were still far from their personal bests at the Hollister course, which, unfortunately for San Benito, will not be hosting the TCAL Championships.
“It’s kind of good to see these guys coming together this last week,” Morales said.
San Benito’s only TCAL loss this season came to Salinas by a 23-35 margin, and the Cowboys are perhaps the only team in the TCAL that stand in San Benito’s way of a league crown.
Similar to last season, when the Balers lost to Salinas in the regular season only to upend them 41-55 in the TCAL Championships, Morales believes his team has nothing to lose.
“Now they realize what Salinas has. They’re a good team and we learned from them. Now we have to respond,” said Morales, whose team is made up mostly of sophomores. “We have to chase them … These guys are eager to do what they have to do.”
For the Lady Balers, they’re nursing some injuries, which will be the key focus, along with Gilroy, heading into next Saturday’s run.
The only time Gilroy and San Benito met this season was Sept. 21 at Park Hill, where the visiting Mustangs narrowly defeated the Lady Balers 24-31.
But if San Benito can get back to last week’s times when they defeated Notre Dame, North Salinas and Alvarez at Natividad Creek Park, they should find themselves neck and neck with Gilroy next Saturday.
After finishing third last year in the TCAL Championships, where they posted three sub-21 minute times, the Lady Balers had five sub-21 minute times last week in the four-team meet in Salinas.
Defending TCAL champion Courtney Allen took first overall in 18:58, while the bulk of her teammates stayed together and followed shortly after, including Grace Tobias (20:09), Dayna Casillas (20:13), Ana Rosa Duarte (20:37) and Rachel Shimabukuro (20:42).
“We have some girls that are injured. If we can get them ready for TCALs, we’ll be okay,” coach Josh Morales said. “Whatever we put into this (past) week should carry over to TCAL finals.”
At this point in the season, conditioning is about as good as it will get. So the Balers will be looking to improve in the speed department, which is especially important at Salinas’ Toro Park where each race is opened with a mad dash as runners jockey for position before they hit the narrow trails.
While this past week was dedicated to longer distances, Josh Morales said next week will be geared towards speed workouts, like the 200- and 400-meters, before the teams begin to wind down and rest.
“Just basically, not work as hard,” said Morales, who added that the team will be running the 200 and 400 four or five times a day next week.”
For a little added preparation, San Benito also plans on training at Toro Park a couple of times leading up to next week’s race, because in the end, that is where the TCAL Championships will ultimately be decided.
“I don’t think we could over-prepare,” said harrier Adrian Rodriguez. “The coaches are pretty good about getting us ready for TCALs every year.”
