CIF State XC Championships Recap - Girls Division 4

Chiara Dailey more than made up for lost time and the "Era of JSerra" continued Saturday in the Division 4 girls final at the CIF State Cross Country Championships.

D4 Girls Chiara Dailey (La Jolla, 11/16/2024)

Dailey, who was injured and unable to compete Oct. 12 at Woodward Park in Fresno at the 45th ASICS Clovis Invitational, produced the No. 2 performance in division history by clocking 16 minutes, 44.4 seconds on the 5-kilometer layout as the La Jolla junior became the first back-to-back Division 4 champion since Malibu’s Claudia Lane in 2016-17.

JSerra had five scorers in the top 17 to achieve a 34-point effort, improving on its own division record for lowest team score of 40 points from last season.

JSerra also secured a third consecutive trip to compete at Nike Cross Nationals, earning an opportunity to race Dec. 7 at Glendoveer Golf Course in Portland, Ore.

Harvard-Westlake returned to the podium for the first time since 2011 by securing second with 143 points and Auburn Placer took third at 150 points, with La Jolla benefiting from Dailey’s victory to finish fourth at 156 points.

Chloe Elbaz placed second in 17:33.7, Sophie Polay took third in 17:49.4, Reese Holley earned seventh in 18:00.0, Kaia Streadbeck achieved 16th in 18:25.1 and Hayden Kroger captured 18:28.6 for JSerra, which became the only Division 4 program to win four consecutive championships and just the fifth school in any division to secure at least four in a row.

D4 Girls Chloe Elbaz (#672, JSerra, 11/23/2024)

D4 Girls Sophie Polay (JSerra, 11/23/2024)

The Lions also became the sixth girls team in state history to secure at least seven titles, including the fourth to achieve the feat in the same division.

Giselle Fernandez of Riverbank clocked 17:57.1 to finish fourth, elevating from 24th place last season in 18:54.9.

Shelby Taylor from Morro Bay was fifth in 17:57.3, ascending from 22nd last year in 18:51.7.

Ani Stieg of Archie Williams secured sixth in 17:59.6, improving from 60th last season in 19:50.1.

Coastal Academy freshman Lindsey Billotte achieved eighth in her state meet debut in 18:00.8.

Placer, which was back on the podium for the first time since 2004, had Olivia Passafiume achieve ninth in 18:05.4.

Marlborough junior Maddie Giorgio ran 18:07.0 to take 10th in her first career race at Woodward Park, earning all-state recognition.

Elle Kirman, a sophomore, clocked 18:36.6 and freshman Jia Rhee ran 18:40.5 to place 23rd and 25th, respectively, for runner-up Harvard-Westlake.

By Erik Boal