An annual tradition since 2011! The Monta Vista girls and boys both got on the line to compete in the Central Coast Section Championships on Saturday, November 12, and a cool and breezy Fall day.
The girls were up first, and they were part of one of the fastest races ever at Crystal Springs. The first three teams (SCVAL competitors Los Altos and Palo Alto along with St. Francis) put up marks that are in the top-20 at Crystal Springs all-time, and the top five finishers made the individual all-time list. The girls held their own with a team time of 96:20 (21:16 average) that was good for an 8th place CCS finish! Congratulations to Nikhita Saldi, Anika Bhandarkar, Avani Kalari (with a season best 21:09), Sydney Stevens, Valerie Ayzenberg, Megan Nieh and Nerea Northrop!
The boys race was also exciting, as Los Gatos and St. Francis battled for the top spot. Monta Vista again fought well, with an 86:09 (17:08 per runner) mark that was near their season best. Denny Dong lead Monta Vista, getting below 16 minutes for the first time and finishing 6th, earning a medal, all-CCS status and a trip to the California State Championships in two weeks! Tanay Parikh was next, also recording a PR with his 16:30. Freshman Ravi Polisetti was only the second freshman to finish in the D2 boys race–that’s an impressive end to his first cross country season. Ari Rajaram and Gene Zhou were the only seniors running today, so the first three MVXC finishers and 6th man Ruhaan Shah will all be back in 2023!
Complete results are posted. Malcolm Slaney’s photos and Agnes Wang’s photos are both downloadable for your enjoyment!
See you all at the awards banquet on November 15, and dare I say at the State Meet on November 26?
Alumni Update
Triya Roy earned all-region honors as her Johns Hopkins cross country team won the Mid-Atlantic Region and advanced to the NCAA championships next weekend; Rohun Agrawal placed 25th in the Western Region for Caltech.
