2025 CCS Cross Country Preview

Welcome to the 2025 Central Coast Section Cross Country Meet.  The historic Crystal Springs course will host the event once again.  The current 2.95-mile course has remained the rock-solid same course since its first year in 1971. The course is one of the most iconic in the United States, and we have Bob Rush to thank for the time he invested in the course since its inception.

RACE SCHEDULE 

10:00am     Division I Boys' Race

10:35am     Division I Girls' Race

11:10am     Division II Boys' Race

11:45am     Division II Girls' Race

12:20pm    Division III Boys' Race

12:55pm    Division III Girls' Race

1:30pm      Division IV Boys' Race

2:05pm      Division IV Girls' Race

2:40pm      Division V Boys' Race

3:15pm      Division V Girls' Race

 

An awards presentation will take place immediately after completion of each division.

 

The CCS Divisions can be found at this LINK     

 

CCS Preview:

Thank you very much to all the coaches who helped me break down each division.  The following is my best attempt to predict the top 4-5 teams and the top individuals for each division (boys and girls) in Saturday’s section meet.  The teams from this meet that will qualify for the State Meet at Woodward Park in Fresno on November 29th are noted for each division.  The top 5 individuals from each race will also qualify for the state meet, provided they are in the top 12 when two teams qualify, top 14 when three teams qualify, and top 16 when four teams qualify.

Division I

Boys (Top 3 teams will advance to the state meet)

The first race of the day may be the most competitive race in the entire meet. The favorites at this point are the Bellarmine boys. They finished 2nd last year behind an inspired Mountain View team at CCS, but were an even more impressive 2nd at the state meet. The Bells were just crowned WCAL champions once again and will roll into the meet seeking another section title. They will be led by individual favorite, senior Stephen Sziebert. Their main competition will come from PAL champions, Menlo Atherton. The Bears packed 5 under 16 minutes at their league final, recording a perfect score of 15. They will be led by PAL champion Cason Mitchell and runner-up Aidan Sharp. The battle for the last spot will come down to league rivals Los Altos and Milpitas. Los Altos edged Milpitas by 9 points at the SCVAL El Camino final, but this is basically a toss-up, and whoever runs best will advance to the state meet.

Girls (Top 3 teams will advance to the state meet)

The favorite team here will be the Los Altos girls. They won the SCVAL El Camino division and were ranked 8th in the state in the last state meet rankings by PrepCalTrack. The battle for 2nd place will be an interesting one and will involve two PAL teams. Menlo Atherton and Carlmont have flip-flopped back and forth in all their league races. At the PAL championship, the Carlmont girls emerged as victors and will be slight favorites on Saturday. It will come down to a few points, and every runner passed by either team will definitely count in this race. The Evergreen Valley girls will also definitely be in the mix and could surge ahead of one of the two PAL teams to secure the last state meet spot with a return to form from their early-season races.

Division II

Boys (Top 2 teams will advance to the state meet)

Mountain View is one of the teams that is residing in a new division this year. They won the Division I race last year and will be heavy favorites to repeat as section champions this year, despite losing one of their top runners earlier in the season. Ryan Chen leads the way for the Spartans. The drama in this race will undoubtedly center on who will secure the second and final state meet berth in this division. It's a 3 way battle with three teams all coming in with aspirations of grabbing that spot. Piedmont Hills finished in 2nd place behind Willow Glen in the BVAL final, with Branham getting 3rd. Both teams will definitely turn it up a notch on Saturday. Branham's Alijah Murillo will be favored to win, which will put his team at an advantage by capturing the lowest stick. The 3rd team in the mix will be the St. Francis, MV boys. They finished in 3rd place at the WCAL final behind strong Bellarmine and St. Ignatius teams. They are led by a strong front runner, Tyler Huo.

Girls (Top 4 teams will advance to the state meet)

We will have another huge favorite in this race with the St. Francis, MV girls. At the WCAL final, the Lancers recorded the 4th fastest team time in course history, running 91:50. They are a podium contender at the state and will most definitely win here. The race for second will be between BVAL champion Leigh and SCVAL El Camino 2nd place teams, Mt. View and Henry M. Gunn. Mountain View edged Gunn by the 6th man tie-breaker. Gelila Hailu of Leigh will be among the top runners in the race, which will be led by individual favorite, Palo Alto senior, Amaha Bharadwaj. All three teams should be in contention for the three state meet spots that will be up for grabs after the St. Francis runners finish their race. The rest of the top teams should include Branham, and Piedmont Hills.

Division III
Boys (Top 3 teams will advance to the state meet)

The best team in this division all season has been the Willow Glen boys. They have been ranked in the top 3 at the state level and just won the BVAL league championship. Despite those accolades, they will definitely have a team hot on their tail on Saturday. WG will be led by individual favorite Aiden Dunosky, who recorded his best time of 15:08.1 while winning the Championship Varsity race of the Serra Invitational. The St. Ignatius boys finished 2nd behind a strong Bellarmine team at the WCAL final and have one of the strongest packs in the section. Willow Glen seems to have a slight edge, but it will likely be a dual meet up front between both teams, which means every spot is critical as they approach the finish line. The 3rd strongest team appears to be Sacred Heart Cathedral. They should capture the last spot to the state meet.

Girls (Top 2 teams will advance to the state meet)

With only 2 teams qualifying for the state meet, the margin for error is very small in this division. The favorite at this point is the St. Ignatius girls. They were 2nd at the WCAL final behind a very strong St. Francis, MV team. The race for 2nd should come down to Sacred Heart Cathedral and Burlingame. Both teams should be at full strength this Saturday, and it should be a hotly contested race for the last spot to Fresno. Burlingame has the advantage with two of the top runners in this division in Elizabeth Carroll and Stella Newman. St. Ignatius runner Eliot Marsh has posted the fastest time on the Crystal Springs course at 18:10.1.

Division IV 
Boys (Top 3 teams will advance to the state meet)

The favorite to win this race will be the Mills boys' team. They have two runners ready to crack the 16 minute barrier and are the only team in this division that could pack their top 5 under 17 minutes. The most dangerous team in this division is Aptos. They could potentially pack their top 3 in the top 4 of the race, which means they could threaten Mills with an inspired run from the back of the pack. The next best teams will be Archbishop Riordan and Santa Cruz. Both teams have been under the radar so far this season but now get to shine at the right moment with an opportunity to qualify for the state meet. Aptos runners Sam Hansen and Brady Bliesner are the two best runners in this race.

Girls (Top 3 teams will advance to the state meet)
The Scotts Valley girls have won the last two section titles in this division and will be favored to make it 3 in a row. Their main competition should come from league rival Aptos. Scotts Valley has the best runner in senior Ava Decleve, but Aptos senior Maya Shiro finished one second behind her at their league final. The next two teams will be Archbishop Riordan and Harker. Riordan will need the healthy return of their #1 runner, Freddie Michalchuk. Harker, now coached by former Menlo coach Jorge Chen, finished 2nd at the WBAL meet and is definitely in the mix for a top 3 finish. Saratoga would be the next team and should finish in 5th place.

Division V

Boys (Top 4 teams will advance to the state meet)

The Menlo boys won CCS last year, breaking the streak of 9 section titles by the Crystal Springs Uplands School boys. They also won the state meet and qualified for NXN. They will be strongly favored to win here and will be in contention for a podium finish at the state meet led by junior Henry Hauser. The next two teams should be Nueva and Monte Vista Christian. Nueva will be led by the individual favorite, senior Ryan Fitzpatrick. He's been one of the strongest runners in the state and will be looking to post a really fast time on his final effort on the Crystal Springs course. Monte Vista Christian has two brothers leading their pack in senior Gavin Beckmen and freshman Owen Beckmen. The last spot to the state meet will go to either Pacific Grove or Crystal Springs Uplands School. PG will be led by senior Antony Gabrik while Crystal will be led by junior Conrad Chern.

Girls (Top 4 teams will advance to the state meet)
The Crystal Springs Uplands School girls will be heavily favored to win their 4th straight section title in a row. They will also be favored to win the state meet as they return their top five runners from last season, including section individual favorite Anna Salter and fellow seniors Kira Dye and Heidy Avina. Battling for 2nd place will be Menlo, led by senior Ariya Kaushek and a senior-dominated Nueva team. With 4 teams advancing to the state meet, the final spot should be between Woodside Priory and Castilleja. WP will be led by senior Piper Kalinowski, while Castilleja will need the healthy return of defending individual champion Brooke Oliviera if they are going to contend for that 4th and final spot.