First published in the Nov. 10 print issue of the Outlook Valley Sun.
The St. Francis High School varsity cross-country team executed an impressive 1-3-4 finish to beat 23-time defending champion Loyola High School, 27-34, at the Mission League finals at Pierce College last Monday.
Senior Hayden Owen, the Mission League champion, won the 3-mile race in 15:28 with an impressive nine-second margin of victory. Junior Luke Metcalf finished third in 15:40 with junior Sam Franco not far behind in 15:49. Sophomore Aidan Guzman was ninth in 16:06, senior Noe Barraza was 10th in 16:13, sophomore Auge Martin was 11th in 16:20 and sophomore Axel Gonzalez was 14th in 16:30.
The Golden Knights, guided by head coach Pat Donovan and assistant coach Chris Lyons, executed a masterful team effort with a 62-second time gap across their entire seven-runner varsity lineup. The next stop is the CIF-SS prelims at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut on Friday, Nov. 11.