Saturday was the big debut for Gilroy High’s cross country teams at Toro Park to compete in the Chieftain-Spirit Classic.
For the varsity girls, Briseida Perez and Marissa Galvan showed inner strength as they both powered through the course after a bout with a lung virus this week. “Sergio Jimenez and Marianna Bundros deserve a special mention for tending to Marissa after she finished her race feeling weak. They showed true Mustang family devotion,” said coach Cathy Silva.
Freshman Maddie Eastus sprinted across the finish line taking fifth overall in the race finishing in 21 minutes.. She was soon followed by a pack of her teammates: Marianna Bundros (22:56), Serenity Rodriguez (23:08), and Anna Turk (23:14). Isabella Cordich, Regina Perez, and Dariana Rodriguez completed the young squad who earned third place as a team.
After a month of practices for pacing and running as packs, the boys teams were also eager to test their skills.
The varsity boys took seventh overall with Noe Serafio (18:06) and Elias Chavez-Hernandez (18:15) leading the squad.
Freshman Arturo Perez was the first of the JV boys to cross the line with an 18:45 time.
Anthony Rodriguez, Carlos Mendoza and Christopher Lopez ran the race in their pack providing support for each other as they tackled the terrain.
Coach Art was pleased with the runners’ performance and encouragement shown towards their teammates. The first outing for Gilroy High’s Cross Country team was a success.
