Team Spotlight: JSerra Girls Team Stands On the Doorstep of Historical Accomplishments CIF State XC Championships

JSERRA GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY TEAM STANDS ON THE DOORSTEP OF HISTORICAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS AT CIF STATE CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

For the JSerra Girls Cross Country team, the trek from San Juan Capistrano to Woodward Park for the 2024 CIF State Cross Country Championships comes with a myriad of historical possibilities.

Orange County’s ruling running powerhouse can ascend into the rare air section of the state history books on Saturday, when the Lions stalk the starting line in the Division 4 race.

With a victory (the Lions enter the competition as the top-ranked Division 4 team in the state), JSerra would lay claim to the program’s fourth consecutive state title, something that no Orange County team (boys or girls) has ever done.

The Lions would also tie the Corona del Mar girls’ program for the most state title amongst all schools from Orange County with seven.

Only five other girls teams in state history (University High of San Francisco, Saugus, Great Oak, Campolindo, and the aforementioned Corona del Mar) have won seven or more state titles.

With key components graduating and leaving for other schools, along with the usual seasonal roadblocks of injuries and illness, JSerra’s 2024 journey to the doorstep of another state title has had its’ fair share of challenges and obstacles.

The team did not compete with its full assortment of runners until the midway point of the season and suffered a shockingly lopsided upset to rival Orange County stalwart Trabuco Hills at the Orange County Championships, which denied the Lions a third straight O.C. title.

Nonetheless, the Lions have rebounded in recent outings and have more closely resembled the running collective that many tabbed to be one of the nations’ best when the season started.

The Lions overwhelmed their Trinity League rivals to earn a share of the league title for the 14th time in the last 15 years, and then at the CIF-SS Division 4 Finals last week at Mt. San Antonio College, JSerra smothered the field in impressive fashion.

The scoring quintet of senior Sophie Polay (the individual Division 4 champion), junior Chloe Elbaz, sophomore Reese Holley, freshman Kaia Streadbeck, and sophomore Hayden Kroger all scored in the top 14.

The scoring compression keyed the Lions to the lowest cumulative score (29 points) and the biggest margin of victory (73 points) amongst the 10-race competition.

With sophomore Hutton Nelligan and junior Kaylah Tasser also finishing in top 35 and ready to step into a potential scoring roles, the Lions once again displayed the stellar depth that has become their trademark weapon of success.

JSerra’s return trip to Woodward Park (they finished second in the championship race at the Clovis Invitational in October) also puts them on a course that they have performed very well on in recent competitions.

The Lions turned in a top 30 all-time team time performance earlier this season (90:47), and in last year’s state final, JSerra (89:42) had the fastest cumulative clocking ever amongst Orange County schools (and the 10th fastest in course history).

After JSerra’s convincing triumph at the CIF-SS Divisional Finals, Tasser outlined a simple mentality that her and her teammates have used throughout the season and will take with them into their state showdown.

“We just need to keep doing what we’ve been doing all season, which is working hard on and off the course and being really prepared,” Tasser said. “I’m really confident in this group of girls being able to pull off all of our goals.”

FR Media Team