Santiago’s Braelyn Combe again found herself in the winner’s circle at the Mt. SAC Cross Country Invitational.
Combe set a meet record Saturday morning at Hilmer Lodge Stadium, winning the Division 1/2 individual sweepstakes race in a time of 16 minutes, 53.2 seconds. Combe’s time was nearly 26 seconds faster than any other girls runners at the event.
The previous meet record (on the current 3-mile course layout) was a 16:57 run last year by South Pasadena’s Abigail Errington.
This marks is the third consecutive season Combe has won a race at the prestigious Mt. SAC Invitational. She also claimed the individual titles in the Division 1/2 team sweepstakes race during her sophomore and junior campaigns with Santiago.
“That was exactly what I was going for,” Combe told Youth Runner Magazine about the meet record. “Trying to see what kind of hard effort I could get in. … It really was an exciting race and builds hype for (the CIF Southern Section) Division 1 finals. … Going into this race, I just wanted to see what time I could run and if I could solo a sub-17, and that’s what happened.”
The Division 1/2 girls individual sweepstakes race featured several talented runners, but Combe blew away the rest of the field. She held an 8-second lead following the opening mile and then increased the advantage to 20 seconds after two miles. Combe, who has committed to Arkansas, continued to push and finished 36.1 seconds ahead of Charlotte Hopkins of Arcadia.
“I tried not to worry too much about the competition and the gap because I wanted to run my own race and see what I could do,” Combe said. “… I was trying to stay mindful of pushing the hard, challenging parts … getting up the hills as fast as I can.”
Combe’s win helped Santiago claim the team title in that event. The Sharks finished 17 points ahead of Warren and Aliso Niguel.
Santiago’s Addyson Johns continued her strong freshman campaign by placing fourth in a time of 18:01.8. Olivia Bollenbach of Riverside Poly finished fifth (18:04.5) and Ontario’s Isabella Ruiz placed 11th (18:31.0) in that race.
Riverside Poly’s Jace Deledonne made it an Inland sweep in the Division 1/2 individual sweepstakes races, as he captured the boys championship with a time of 14:42.7. Deledonne’s time briefly was a meet record and was the second fastest at the Mt. SAC Invitational this year. Yohannes Van Meerten of Flagstaff (Arizona) smashed the meet record with a 14:10.1 to win the individual title in the Division 1/2 team sweepstakes race.
Deledonne was 12th following the opening mile of his race, but he made a move and was leading after two miles. Deledonne battled Chaffey’s Albert Jacinto over the final mile, but Deledonne crossed the line 8.2 seconds ahead of Jacinto (14:50.9).
“It’s an honor to compete against some of the best of the best in the state and even the nation,” Deledonne told Youth Runner Magazine. “It’s just a surreal feeling really. I’m so happy and proud I was able to finally get my time on this course. Last year was kind of a difficult year, especially on this course. It’s just a great feeling to come out here and win … . It’s just amazing.”
Ontario’s Michael Ortega finished third (15:11.1), Ayala’s Bryson Caganap was fifth (15:16.5), and Roosevelt’s Luke Lopez placed ninth (15:19.6). Ayala won the team title in the Division 1/2 individual sweepstakes race, finishing three points ahead of Aliso Niguel.
King’s Maximo Zavaleta finished third (14:52.4) in the Division 1/2 boys team sweepstakes race. Big Bear’s Kevin Horner placed 14th (15:59.5) in the Division 3/4/5 individual sweepstake race.
Great Oak finished second in the Division 1/2 girls team sweepstakes event. Makenna Mitchell led the way for the Wolfpack, finishing 13th (18:13.5). King’s Elizabeth Jacklin was the top local finisher in that race (17:51.5 for sixth place).
Big Bear was second in the Division 3/4/5 girls individual sweepstakes race. The Bears had three runners inside the Top 30, led by Abby Sweeney (19:38.1 for 27th place).
