The men’s cross-country team has enjoyed major success in the past years. A lot of that success has come from recently graduated standout Agustin Barreto.
Barretto left a huge void, which was originally to be filled by Osvaldo Felix, who unfortunately left the program to join the navy.
This leaves the men’s team in a rebuilding stage. Yet, head coach Tonie Campbell mentioned that there is still talent on the team. But in particular, two runners, Abisaia Magana and Ricardo Murrillo, have separated themselves as key members of the team.
“Even though he is only a freshman, Abasai has stepped up to be our de facto leader,” said Campbell. “SWC is legendary for outstanding runners so he has big shoes to fill. Luckily he has a mature co-captain like Ricardo. Both individuals are hard working and dedicated to the effort and in time, those efforts will blossom.”
While the men’s team has had some success, losing last year’s state finals participant Xeomara Villalobos was a crushing blow to the women’s team as they have yet to place in a meet this year. Villalobos exhausted her eligibility to participate in meets for the program this year because she was previously apart of the cross-country team at Mt. Sac College.
That absence has been felt this year as the women’s team struggled to reach full numbers. In fact, Campbell mentioned they were still recruiting up until two weeks before their first meet.
The lack of numbers hurt them, as the team has failed to place in any of their meets. Campbell pointed to the scheduling of athletic classes conflicting with academic classes as a key factor behind those lack of numbers.
“I have lost eight really good girls and five guys this year alone,” he said. “ They want to come out and join, but cannot because of a class mandatory to their major conflicting with practice times.”
