Canyons Cross Country Teams Headed to State Championship Meet

The College of the Canyons cross country teams are heading back to the state championship meet after a qualifying run at last week's California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) SoCal Championships held at Irvine Regional Park.

The women's team placed seventh in the field of 27 teams, led by sophomore Jessica Ruiz' seventh place time of 18:56.1 on the 5K course.

Canyons entered the event as the No. 4 ranked team in the state, but was forced to run without top contributor Stephanie Martinez, who experienced leg tightness in pre-race warm ups and was subsequently held out of the event.

"We just wanted to be cautious heading into the state meet later this month," said COC head coach Lindie Kane.

Glendale College finished in first place, followed by Riverside College, Mt. SAC, Saddleback, L.A. Harbor, Cuesta and Canyons to round out the top seven.

Freshman Díani Ellis posted the second fastest time for COC with her mark of 19:37 to finish 23rd. Sophomore Chelsea Wells was the third place runner for Canyons with her time of 21:16.9 to finish 77th overall.

Freshman Celine Whitman and Taylor Hernandez ran to identical times of 21:23.4 to place 81st and 82nd overall, respectively.

On the men's side, Canyons placed 18th in the field of 28 to claim the final qualifying spot for the state championships. San Bernardino Valley College was the event champion followed by Glendale and Mt. SAC. 

COC freshman Garrett Noltemeyer was the first to cross the line for the Cougars with a time of 22:14.2 to finish 74th.

Sophomore Jake Higdon (22:31.1) finished 96th overall followed by Mauricio La Plante (22:36.6) in 101st. 

Cody Roelofson (22:50.8) was 114th overall and Christopher Ochoa (23:18.5) finished 129th.

Canyons will now head to the CCCAA State Championships on Saturday, Nov. 19, at Woodward Park in Fresno.

—Jesse Munoz/COC Sports Information

—Photos by Mike Whitman/COC Sports Information