Pirates seek State gold

Bryce Alderton

What better way to come into a state meet than winning the

Southern California championships?

That’s just what both the Orange Coast College men’s and women’s

cross country teams did Nov. 9, and they hope to continue this

season’s success with victories at the state championships Saturday

at Fresno’s Woodward Park.

The women race at 10 a.m. and the men compete at 11 a.m., and both will attempt to win state championships in the same year for the

first time since 1999.

“The women have been strong all year so as long as they show up

and run the races like they’ve been doing I think we’ll be fine,”

said first-year Orange Coast Coach John Knox. “Someone will have to

run a great race to beat us.”

The women won last year’s state championship and have won seven of

eight meets this season led by the 1-2 duo of defending state

champion Michelle Icban and Ava Jones.

Icban and Jones have placed 1-2 at four of the seven meets OCC has

won, with Icban finishing first three times.

Icban and Jones join Natalie St. Andre, who finished fifth overall

at the OEC Championships with a 19:35.32, Roseann Peters, Susie

Dinoso, Sandra Montoya and Natalie Elliott.

The men have been a pleasant surprise for Knox. They have either

tied for or taken first in five of the eight meets this season.

Knox said the men’s race may hinge on how the sixth runner fares,

but he commented that they have showed no signs of pre-race jitters.

“We had a real good workout (last week) and guys don’t seem like

they’re stressing about this. They are working hard toward getting

along with each other. As long as we have five guys staying

shoulder-to-shoulder with each other I think we’ll be fine.”

The pack that hopes to bring Knox a championship will be Joel

Guzman, David Ojeda, Sam Ocampo, Gilbert Salas, Irwin Salas, Mike

Casillas and Vidal Barragan.

Guzman ran one of his better times (8th, 20:22.8) at last week’s

Southern California Community College Cross Country Championships

followed by Gilbert Salas (16th, 20:37.4). Ojeda raced to a

fourth-place time of 20:22.26 to help OCC win the Orange Empire

Conference Championships at Central Park.

“With Joel and David, the other five are interchangeable and help

each other out,” Knox said. “I tell them to stay together for as long

as they can, but if they’re feeling good, to make a break for it.

It’s nice with these guys because they have no egos.”

Saturday’s championships will consist of 28 teams (14 from

Southern California and 14 from Northern California), but Knox said

the talent should come from Southern California.

“I think most of the strong teams come from the South,” he said.

“At the Fresno Invitational the highest men’s finish from the North

was sixth or seventh. I’m gearing toward the South as major

competition for the guys.”