Football, basketball and baseball are team sports.
Track, golf and swimming are individual sports.
But each has a component of the other. In each individual sport, team scores are kept. And there are individuals who stand out in team sports.
Cross country is a combination of both.
When the starting gun sounds to signal the San Diego Section championships Saturday at Morley Field, not only will there be a crowd ready to greet the first one across the finish line, there will be math wizards who can quickly determine the team champions.
“I consider cross country to be a team sport,” said Del Norte coach Chris Jacobs, whose girls are expected to battle Poway for the Division 1 title.
“I would rather win the team title than the individual championship. It’s so much more fun to not only win the banner but to qualify as a team for the state meet, which is what every team is hoping to do.”
The San Diego Section has been awarded three spots for the state meet — one more than a year ago. That’s because Del Norte and Torrey Pines placed in the top 10 at the state meet, with the Nighthawks placing fourth and Torrey Pines ninth.
Heading into the San Diego Section meet, Poway and Del Norte are ranked second and third in the county, respectively, by coaches. Cathedral Catholic is the heavy favorite in Division 3.
Del Norte and Poway have met five times this season, with Del Norte winning four times by a narrow margin, including Saturday’s league championships at Guajome Park.
“The key to the race, I believe, is to have Tessa Buswell do what she does and win with the others not just racing, but competing,” said first-year Poway coach Ronnie Harris.
Buswell finished second a year ago to graduated champion Hannah Riggins. Eastlake’s Jaelyn Williams finished a step behind her.
In the Palomar League meet, Buswell (18:23.4) was fourth behind Westview’s Kaitlyn Arciaga (18:05.8), Mt. Carmel’s Olivia Campos (18:06.4) and Del Norte’s Eliza Hong (18:09.7).
“We can’t just concentrate on Del Norte,” said Harris, “because Canyon Crest, Torrey Pines and Eastlake have strong teams. And it’s good that three teams will go to state. Del Norte and us have competed at the highest level this year and anything but a close race would surprise me.
“I think with Tessa and Avalon Nash, we will be well positioned up front. Then it’s up to our Nos. 3-4-5 to do their job. Of course, Del Norte is thinking the same thing.”
Only with different runners.
Del Norte has been led by the Hong, who beat Buswell in the Palomar Cluster meet. And three members of the Nighthawks’ national champion 4×800 relay team (Emily Russo, Ella and Paige Echsner), plus cross country standout Shannon Addison usually form the top five. But Lilah Enyedi and Samhita Lagisetti have stepped up big when asked.
Poway counters with Buswell and Nash (11th in the section a year ago), both seniors; sophomore Madison Li; and freshmen Ally Santavicca and Nina Muscat. Depth is provided by sophomores Catalina Husseman and Reese McEwan.
“The key for us is to stay focused, and we weren’t focused going into Mt. SAC,” said Jacobs whose Nighthawks lost to Poway at Mt. SAC.
“League and CIF championships are part of our preseason expectations, so we have to stay focused. We have to keep our sights on the goal of winning two straight section titles to be sure to qualify for state. This is what makes cross country fun. It’s a healthy competition between two schools that are only 10 miles apart. And don’t forget about the other teams — anything can happen.”
San Diego Section Cross Country Championships
When: Saturday
Where: Morley Field at Balboa Park (3 miles)
Why: To determine section division champions and state qualifying teams and individuals.
Schedule:8:30-Division V boys; 9:00-Division I boys; 9:30-Division V girls; 10:05-Division I girls; 10:40-Division II boys; 11:10-Division III girls; 11:45-Division IV boys; 12:15-Division II girls; 12:50-Division III boys; 1:20-Division IV girls.
Boys overview: A year ago, Liberty Charter’s Micah Sanchez proved unbeatable en route to winning the state Division V title. However, the only returning champion this year is High Tech High San Diego’s Kai Lange-Dei, who won Division IV by 14 full seconds. All that means is wide-open races with veteran runners like El Camino’s Omar Reyes, Canyon Crest’s Jacob Pippel and Westview’s Adrian Welton— all in Division I — pushing for the individual titles. Wide open battles for team supremacy in each of five divisions are expected with the likes of Torrey Pines (DI), Vista (DII), Cathedral Catholic (DIII), La Jolla (DIV) and Liberty Charter (DV) the pre-race favorites.
Girls overview: As good as the races were a year ago, this year looks even better. La Costa Canyon’s Gioana Lopizzo (DIII), La Jolla’s Chiara Dailey (DIV) and Bishops’ Ayanna Hickey (DV) return as defending champions. Widen that to include the Division I race, where defending state champion Tessa Buswell of Poway is expected to be pushed by Eastlake’s Jaelyn Williams, Del Norte’s Emily Russo and Westview’s Kaitlyn Arciaga. Likewise, the DI team race should be special, with Del Norte, Poway, Canyon Crest and Torrey Pines vying for three state berths. Elsewhere, Cathedral Catholic, ranked No. 3 in the state in DIII, La Jolla (DIV), Scripps Ranch (DII) and Francis Parker (DV) are early favorites.
STEVE BRAND