Colton, CA—With the season beginning on the track at Colton High, it was only fitting that it should end there as well. On Saturday, cross country teams from the Arrowhead Athletic Conference converged on Colton High for the final 3.1 mile race of the season.
Colton’s boys team placed fourth overall in competition, qualifying for the CIF race at Mt. Sac college on Nov. 16. Additionally, senior Diana Ruvalcaba Nunez qualified as an individual with a ninth place finish, and sophomore Sebastian Carlos qualified with his sixth place finish.
Colton’s girls team placed third overall in their division, but missed the cut for CIF qualification.
For Carlos, this was his first season running cross country, and he took the San Andreas league by storm, emerging as a runner to watch over the next two years. “My goal for next year is to break 17 minutes and get around 16:30,” the sophomore said.
For Ruvalcaba, however, this was her final race at Colton High. The senior has had a distinguished running career as a Yellowjacket, qualifying in CIF for her second consecutive season.
“It’s great to end on a really high note,” Ruvalcaba said. “I honestly didn’t have the highest hopes for the season—it’s been pretty hard—but I ended off beautifully.”
With the final race of the season came the annual Senior Night event. Eleven Cross Country seniors are graduating this year, and they were celebrated in a ceremony after the league finals. The seniors leaving the team this year are: Christopher Acero, Joel Lemus, Jose Perez, Phillip Mugica, Adamaris Rodela, Yara Vera, Diana Ruvalcaba, Ximena Jimenez, Regina Flores, Camila Alvarez, Denise Moncada. They were presented with roses, posters, gift baskets, and well-wishes by their coaches and teammates.
For first-year head coach Mateo Cisneros, this season was a challenge, but it was made all the more rewarding because of all the people involved. “There was so much improvement this season,” he shared. “I got to see improvement right from the start. I got to see them challenge themselves and push themselves. I got to see where they started the beginning of the season and where they ended today. Fantastic improvement!”
The conference finals involved the two leagues that comprise the Arrowhead Conference for cross country: Sunkist and San Andreas. The Sunkist league races took place early in the day, with San Andreas following.
In the Sunkist, Rim of the World’s girls team took first place for varsity girls, and Fontana took first for the varsity boys. Grand Terrace took fourth and third place, respectively, in the two divisions.
For the varsity girls, Ali and Ava Holtzen of Rim of the World went one-two, with Savannah Flores placing third. Rim’s runners took four of the top five finishing spots. Grand Terrace’s Victoria Jimenez finished sixth place.
On the varsity boys side, Luis Mier of Rim placed first, with Ryan Jacquez of Grand Terrace finishing second and Jose Melara of Fontana placing third. Grand Terrace’s Christian Garcia also placed tenth overall.
In the San Andreas league, Rialto placed first, San Gorgonio second, and Colton third for the girls. For the boys, San Gorgonio, Rialto, and Jurupa Hills placed one-two-three, each qualifying for CIF.
In the varsity girls division, Victoria Loyo of Bloomington High took first place, Gabriela Rodriguez of Rialto second, and Flor Castanon of Notre Dame third. Rialto had a strong showing, with five of their runners placing in the top 12.
For the varsity boys, Adam Acuna of Jurupa Hills placed first, Josemaria Ramirez of Rialto took second, and Alejandro Medina of San Gorgonio placed third. San Gorgonio went three-four-five, and had five runners finish in the top 12 of the division.
Colton High School Times
* designates personal record time.
Varsity Girls
| Name | Grade | Time | Place |
| Diana Ruvalcaba | 12 | 21:36.2 | 9/40 |
| Allyson Mejia | 11 | 22:36.9* | 14/40 |
| Cailin Marcial | 11 | 23:16.5* | 15/40 |
| Regina Flores | 12 | 23:56.9 | 22/40 |
| Yara Vera | 12 | 24:01.2 | 23/40 |
| Camila Alvarez | 12 | 25:15.2* | 29/40 |
| Denise Moncada | 12 | 26:13.5 | 32/40 |
Varsity Boys
| Name | Grade | Time | Place |
| Sebastian Carlos | 10 | 17:15.8* | 6/47 |
| Christopher Acero | 12 | 18:16.8 | 14/47 |
| Andres Vasquez | 10 | 18:33.6* | 18/47 |
| Jose Perez | 12 | 19:36.9 | 34/47 |
| Joel Lemus | 12 | 19:46.1 | 37/47 |
| Cesar Anaya Rivera | 11 | 20:03.1* | 38/47 |
| Phillip Mugica | 12 | 20:03.3* | 39/47 |
JV Times
| Name | Grade | Time | Place |
| Logan Martinez | 11 | 21:04.3 | 14/24 |
| Carlos Moreno | 10 | 21:59.7 | 18/24 |
| Daniel Rodriguez | 10 | 22:00.1* | 19/24 |
| Dorian Rodriguez | 9 | 23:52.0* | 22/24 |
| Eric Barron | 9 | 23:57.3* | 23/24 |
| Leah Quinones | 10 | 25:13.7* | 2/14 |
| Ximena Jimenez | 12 | 28:06.5 | 10/14 |
League Finals Times – Sunkist League
* designates personal record time.
Varsity Girls
| Place | Name | Grade | School | Time |
| 1 | Ava Holtzen | 12 | Rim of the World | 18:29.3* |
| 2 | Ali Holzen | 12 | Rim of the World | 18:38.6* |
| 3 | Savannah Flores | 12 | Arroyo Valley | 18:46.3* |
| 4 | Reilly Simons | 12 | Rim of the World | 19:46.8* |
| 5 | Jazmin Bahena | 11 | Rim of the World | 20:01.0 |
| 6 | Victoria Jimenez | 12 | Grand Terrace | 20:17.3* |
| 7 | Briana Powell | 11 | Fontana | 20:26.4* |
| 8 | Priscila De Leon | 12 | Carter | 20:38.9* |
| 9 | Vinn Ozier | 11 | Summit | 20:41.2* |
| 10 | Dorian Torreblanca | 11 | Fontana | 20:55.4* |
Varsity Boys
| Place | Name | Grade | School | Time |
| 1 | Luis Mier | 12 | Rim of the World | 15:57.1 |
| 2 | Ryan Jacquez | 12 | Grand Terrace | 16:28.4 |
| 3 | Jorge Melara | 12 | Fontana | 16:49.2 |
| 4 | Brandon Badillo | 10 | Fontana | 16:55.2 |
| 5 | Eduardo Gudino | 10 | Fontana | 16:55.6 |
| 6 | Maximiliano Resendis | 12 | Arroyo Valley | 16:56.0* |
| 7 | Roberto Torres | 11 | Carter | 16:57.8 |
| 8 | Adolfo Godinez | 10 | Carter | 17:00.6* |
| 9 | Adrian Villasenor | 11 | Summit | 17:01.2* |
| 10 | Christian Garcia | 10 | Grand Terrace | 17:01.6* |
League Finals Times – San Andreas League
* designates personal record time.
Varsity Girls
| Place | Name | Grade | School | Time |
| 1 | Victoria Loyo | 12 | Bloomington | 19:31.9* |
| 2 | Gabriela Rodriguez | 12 | Rialto | 19:45.9* |
| 3 | Flor Castanon | 11 | Notre Dame | 19:52.2 |
| 4 | Valeria Ramirez | 11 | Jurupa Hills | 20:16.8 |
| 5 | Callie Frias | 12 | Rialto | 20:31.7 |
| 6 | Sophia Lopez | 9 | San Gorgonio | 20:47.1* |
| 7 | Zyani Perez | 12 | Jurupa Hills | 21:19.5 |
| 8 | Lilliana Torres | 12 | Rialto | 21:23.4* |
| 9 | Diana Ruvalcaba Nunez | 12 | Colton | 21:36.2 |
| 10 | Esmeralda Allende | 12 | San Gorgonio | 21:36.9* |
Varsity Boys
| Place | Name | Grade | School | Time |
| 1 | Adam Acuna | 12 | Jurupa Hills | 15:52.3* |
| 2 | Josemaria Ramirez | 9 | Rialto | 15:57.0* |
| 3 | Alejandro Medina | 12 | San Gorgonio | 16:03.1 |
| 4 | Eudier Leano | 11 | San Gorgonio | 16:45.4* |
| 5 | Nathan Muniz | 11 | San Gorgonio | 17:01.9 |
| 6 | Sebastian Carlos | 10 | Colton | 17:15.9* |
| 7 | John Mark Reyes | 11 | Rialto | 17:23.7* |
| 8 | Dylan Regalado | 11 | Rialto | 17:33.3* |
| 9 | Angel Garcia | 9 | San Gorgonio | 17:59.0 |
| 10 | Isaac Parga | 10 | Bloomington | 18:05.4 |
