Mt. SAC women race to an eighth state title and end a 14-year drought!

 In the earlier race, Mt. San Antonio's women, the SoCal runners-up, snared the big prize downing Canyons, 78-104. SoCal champ Glendale, the pre-race favorite, was third at 109.

It was the Mounties first state women's title since 2000 and ended a 14-year drought. It was Mt. SAC's eighth state women's title, second only to Orange Coast's 16 state championships.

   Like the COC men, the Mounties bunched up well as freshman Lindsey Keough (18:08) and soph Sierra Ungerman (18:22) finished the 3.1 mile course 6th and 7th. Sophomore Nichelle Jackson (18:40) was 12th while freshmen  Xeomara Villalobos (19:07) and Melanie Deciga (19:15) were 23rd and 30th to claim the team title.

   Individually, there was even more excitement at Southwestern freshman Aminat Olowora set a course record in a time of 17:00 finishing well ahead of College of the Sequoias' Yesenia Silva (17:34). Olowora broke the record of 17:06 set by East Los Angeles' Sylvia Mosqueda in 1984.  It was Silva's only defeat of the season and once again, she finished second at the state championships. East LA's Laura Aceves (17:58), the 2013 state champ. was third. ARC freshman Jenica Dodge (18:05) and Glendale freshman Jassmine Macon (18:07) were fourth and fifth, just ahead of Mt. SAC's Keough. Like the men, the top 14 finishers are All-Americans.

   Thanks to their consistent excellence the past two seasons, the future at a four-year university for Silva and Aceves appears to be an extremely bright one.

   The results of the 51st CCCAA Men's Cross Country Championships and 38th CCCAA Women's Championships may have featured some surprises and disappointment. However, for the COC men and Mt. SAC women, two teams which ended championship droughts, their thirst is quenched. They are king and queen. Now, they can they finally rock and sing along with Queen, "We Are The Champions!"