CROSS COUNTRY
ARCHIVES
2024 Season
Citrus Belt League Finals
The T-Birds competed in the last regular season meet of the year on their home course at the Yucaipa Community Park. The girls JV started off the day with a 2nd place finish as a team. Maddison Fries led the group with a 5th place finish in a time of 21:07. Maddison was joined in the top 10 by Tori Rivera (6th, 21:09), Abigail Gauslin (8th, 21:23), and Lia Caricato (9th, 21:27). The girls Varsity finished 3rd and clinched a playoff spot at CIF Prelims. The Lady T-Birds were only 9 points away from race winners Redlands East Valley. The girls were led by race winner and individual league champion Ellie Palmer. Ellie won the race in 18:28, defeating long time rival Katie Hornung of Redlands East Valley by 2 seconds and becoming the first girls individual champion since Kaitlyn Townsend did it in 2021. Ellie was joined in the top 10 by fellow All-League winners Elizabeth O'Brine (6th, 19:04) and Isabella Alonzo (7th, 19:08).
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The boys varsity raced delivered the closest finish in CBL Finals history with Beaumont squeaking out a narrow 2 point victory over Yucaipa and Redlands East Valley who tied on points. Yucaipa ended in 2nd place because of the 6th runner tie breaker rule. It was a wild ending to the season as a different school won each of the three different league meets, something that has never been done before. The boys were led by Aidan Joyce's (15:26) 3rd place finish. Joining Aidan in the top 10 and receiving all-league honors was Nathan Nielsen (8th, 15:41). The boys JV delivered a dominant 26 point victory over Beaumont to remain undefeated in the league and secure the JV championship. Yucaipa placed 7 boys in the top 10 that included Ian Cintron 2nd, 16:37), Vincent Arreola (3rd, 16:37), Zach Trust (4th, 16:40), Trent Hohman (5th, 16:46), Collin Nielsen (6th, 16:46), Jacob McPherson (7th, 16:46), and freshman standout Kai Good (9th, 17:02).
Great job to everyone who competed at league finals and congrats on a great season to all those whose season ended on Saturday. The T-Birds will compete next at CIF Prelims at the legendary Mt. SAC course on Saturday, November 16. ​​
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Results
Citrus Belt League Meet #2
After 10 years since last competing at this course, the T-Birds travelled to Prospect Park in Redlands to compete in the Citrus Belt League Meet #2. The day started with the Girls JV race where Senior Audrey Alexander won a close race finishing first in 21:11. Joining her in the top 10 was Lexi Trejo (3rd, 21:27), Kherringtin Oosterbroek (7th, 22:14), and Abigail Gauslin (10th, 22:34). These ladies propelled the team to a second place finish just 7 points behind Beaumont. The Girls Varsity were next and placed 3rd overall led by top 10 finishes from Senior duo Ellie Palmer (2nd, 19:12) and Elizabeth O'Brine (6th, 19:48) with Isabella Alonzo (7th, 20:01) rounding out the top 10 finishers for the girls..
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The Varsity Boys had an incredible turn of events from their previous disappointing 4th place finish at CBL Meet #1 by narrowly edging out rivals Redlands East Valley by 2 points to win the varsity race. The boys return to the podium was led by race winner Aidan Joyce who won the race by less than a second in a time of 15:54.9. This was the first time Aidan finished in the top 10 in any league cross country race and a vast improvement from his 11th place finish at CBL Meet #1. Nathan Nielsen placed 10th in 16:26 to round out the top 10 finishers for the boys. The varsity boys now have a chance to defend their league championship at the Citrus Belt League Finals.
The JV Boys had the most dominating performance of the day with a 33 point victory over Beaumont. The JV Boys were led by race winner Sloan Hirsch in a time of 17:15. Sloan was joined in the top 10 by Logan Miederhoff (3rd, 17:31), Ian Cintron (4th, 17:33), Jacob McPherson (5th, 17:43), Trent Hohman (6th, 17:43), Kailen Good (7th, 17:45), and Collin Nielsen (8th, 17:46).
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Great job to everyone who competed! The T-Birds will look to wrap up the regular season on November 2nd at the Citrus Belt League Finals at the Yucaipa Community Park.
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Clovis Invitational
2024
The Varsity squad travelled to Woodward Park in Fresno, home of the state meet course to compete in the Clovis Invitational.
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The varsity girls started off the day strong by placing 17th out of 27 teams in their race. The girls were led by Ellie Palmer's (19:40) 25th place finish out of 180 total finishers. The top 5 for the girls were rounded out by Elizabeth O'Brine (20:03), Isabella Alonzo (20:09), Isabella Miederhoff (21:55), and Isabella Reyes (21:56). The boys varsity had their best race of the season by finishing 3rd out of 21 teams in their respective race. The boys were led by Aidan Joyce's (16:19) 8th place finish out of 165 competitors. The top 5 for the boys was rounded out by Nathan Nielsen (16:54), Archer Avarell (16:54), Nathaniel Sahler (17:04), and Kaden Van Uffelen (17:19).
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Great job to everyone who competed! The T-Birds will next compete at the Citrus Belt League Meet #2 at Prospect Park in Redlands.
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Citrus Belt League Meet #1
The T-Birds travelled to Redlands East Valley High School to compete in the first of three league meets. The day started with the Girls JV race where Junior Isabella Alonzo took the win in a personal best time of 19:44. Joining her in the top 10 was Lia Caricato (7th, 21:22), Lexi Trejo (8th, 21:42), Maddison Fries (9th, 21:54), and Bailee Gilsen (10th, 21:56). These ladies propelled the team to a second place finish. The Girls Varsity were next and placed 3rd led by top 10 finishes from Senior duo Ellie Palmer (5th, 18:54) and Elizabeth O'Brine (7th, 19:20.
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The Varsity Boys finished in 4th place as a team, well below their expectations entering the season. There were no top 10 finishers for the varsity boys. They will look to get back on track at the next league meet. The JV Boys saved the best race for last for the T-Birds as they dominated the competition with a 24 point victory over Beaumont. The JV Boys were led by top 10 finishers Ian Cintron (2nd, 17:00), Collin Nielsen (3rd, 17:00), Jacob McPherson (4th, 17:03), Zach Trust (5th, 17:06), Sloan Hirsch (7th, 17:17), and Trent Hohman (9th, 17:23).
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Great job to everyone who competed! The T-Birds will next compete at the Clovis Invitational in Fresno (Varsity Only).
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Woodbridge Invitational
2024
The T-Bird Cross Country team competed at one of the largest cross county invitationals in the country, the 2024 Woodbridge Invitational. The meet is so large that it is held over the course of two days with over 200 schools from all across the country making the journey to Orange County Great Park in Irvine, California.
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The top 100 athletes in each race earned a medal. The action kicked off with the Girls Novice race that did not feature any top 100 finishers for the T-Birds. Next up were the Freshman girls who were led by Maddison Fries (21:59) 54th place finish as the lone top 100 finisher. The The sophomore girls were led by a handful of top 100 medalists featuring Rosina Reyes (32nd, 20:40), Lia Caricato (60th, 21:23), and Sydnee Gilsen (88th, 22:05). The Junior/Senior girls race was next and did not feature any top 100 finishers for the T-Birds.
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The Freshman boys had the best team placement of the day for the entire squad as they placed 5th overall. There were 5 finishers in the top 100 that included Kailen Good (31st, 17:00), Liam Rundles (68th, 17:40), Drake Rundles (69th, 17:40), Dylan Holloway (72nd, 17:41), and Robert Christensen (78th, 17:47). The Sophomore boys were led by Collin Nielsen (59th, 16:53) and Zachary Trust (87th, 17:12). The Junior boys were led by Joaquin Barraza (51st, 17:05) and Nolan Beck (66th, 17:13). The Seniors boys finished up the last of the non-varsity races of the day with some strong performances from Archer Avarell (11th, 16:02) and Jacob McPherson (54th, 16:50).
The varsity boys were led by Junior Aidan Joyce's 17th place finish and a new 3 Mile PR of 15:10. Seniors Nathan Nielsen (16:01) and Logan Miederhoff (16:18) finished 2nd and 3rd while sophomores Vincent Arreola (16:26) and Nathaniel Sahler (16:33) rounded out the scoring for the boys. The girls varsity were the last race of the day and were led by Senior duo and top 100 finishers Elizabeth Palmer (35th, 18:23) and Elizabeth O'Brine (71st, 18:56). Junior Emma De Jager (19:38), Senior Audrey Alexander (19:42), and Sophomore Lexi Trejo (20:41) rounded out the scoring for the lady t-birds. Great job to all the athletes who competed and walked away with massive personal bests.
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The T-Birds will be back in action next weekend at Redlands East Valley High School for the first of three Citrus Belt League meets against local rivals Beaumont, Redlands, Redlands East Valley, Citrus Valley, and Cajon.
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Mountie Xpress Invitational
The Yucaipa High School cross country team opened up its season this weekend when the team travelled to the legendary Mt. SAC course to compete in the Mountie Xpress Invitational. The day started off well with newcomers Michelina Carlo and Savannah Garcia competing in the Novice race. The Freshman girls were up next and were led by a trio of top 30 finishers in Abigail Gauslin, Maddison Fries, and Tori Rivera. The next race saw the Freshman boys place third overall as a team. A Top 10 finish by Kailen Good led the way with help from 4 other top 30 finishers Liam and Drake Rundles, Dylan Holloway, and Robert Christensen. The Sophomore girls also placed third in their race and were led by top 30 finishers Lexi Trejo and Isabella Miederhoff.
The Sophomore boys had a unique experience as half of the field was called back for a false start but race officials allowed the other half to continue the race. This resulted in the meet running two heats of the boys sophomore race. In heat 1 the boys were led by top 30 finishers Kaden Van Uffelen, Nathaniel Sahler, Vincent Arreola, and Collin Nielsen. In the second heat Sloan Hirsch won the race followed closely by his teammate Luke Tooker. Way to take advantage of the opportunity fellas!
The Junior girls followed the chaotic scene of the sophomore boys race with a couple of nice top 30 finishes from Emma De Jager and Isabella Reyes. The Junior boys race saw Aidan Joyce finish 8th and run the fastest time of the day for the boys in 10:49. The last race of the meet for the girls was the Senior girls race where Elizabeth O'Brine finished 4th overall out of 96 runners in the fastest time of the day for the girls team in 13:23. Audrey Alexander also placed in the top 30 for the Senior girls. The Senior boys closed out the meet for the team and were led by Nathan Nielsen's top 30 finish. The T-Birds will compete next at the Woodbridge Invitational on Saturday, September 21st at Irvine Great Park. Way to go T-Birds!
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Spirit Pack
YUCAIPA CROSS COUNTRY SPIRIT PACK 2024 is now open!
Find items that we have picked out specifically for our team.
There is also spiritwear available for your family and friends.
Check out the shop details below.
OUR SHOP DETAILS
- Shop Now: https://bsnteamsports.com/shop/UEjckRcnJa
- Store Open From: August 22 - September 3, 2024
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Yucaipa vs. Santiago
Time Trial Results
The YHSXC team hosted the Santiago (Corona) High School Sharks at Yucaipa High School. This competition is the first for the T-Birds against another school this season. The morning was started off with the girls 2 mile race where Senior Ellie Palmer led the girls with a third place finish in a time of 11:41, a 27 second improvement from her first time trial in July. The rest of the top 5 for the girls was rounded out by fellow Seniors Elizabeth O'Brine (12:07) and Audrey Alexander (13:10, 1 minute improvement) and Juniors Kaylie Whitaker (13:11, 1:25 improvement) and Emma De Jager (13:12, 54 second improvement).
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The boys were led by breakout Junior Aidan Joyce in a time of 9:50, a 47 second improvement from the first time trial in July. The top 5 was rounded out by Seniors Seth Mueller (9:54, 33 second improvement), Nathan Nielsen (9:59, 36 second improvement), and Gilberto Macedo (10:27, 23 second improvement), and Sophomore standout Kaden Van Uffelen (10:24, 29 second improvement).
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It was a great first step in the right direction for the team as they prepare for the first official race at the world famous Mt. SAC cross country course on August 31st. Keep up the great work T-Birds!
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Yucaipa Team Results
Girls 2 Mile Results (Click Here)
Boys 2 Mile Results (Click Here)
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Combined Results
Boys Results (Click Here)
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Time Trial Results/
Team Roster/
Big Bear Invites
It was another great turnout and a great day for the YHSXC program. Over 70 student-athletes competed in a 1 or 2 mile time trial for an opportunity to make the team and earn an invite to the Big Bear Training Camp. There were some great performances from both the boys and girls teams. The day started off with the Rookies competing in a 1 mile time trial. The boys race came down to the wire with Liam Rundles (5:32) holding on for the win over Kailen Good (5:33) as both athletes fought hard for the finish. Drake Rundles finished third in 5:55, while Dylan Holloway (6:01), Seth Moore (6:01), and Robert Christensen (6:02) all narrowly missed breaking the 6 minute mark. The girls were also led by freshman newcomer Kaylee Looper in a time of 7:25. Addie Mora (7:28), Abigail Gauslin (7:40), Maddison Fries (7:48), Keila Briseno (7:49), and Tori Rivera (7:53) were all succesful in breaking the 8 minute mark and finishing in the top 6.
The returning athletes were up next in their 2 mile trial. The boys runaway race winner was Senior Seth Mueller who covered the 2 mile course in 10:27. Nathan Nielsen (10:35), Aidan Joyce (10:37), Trent Hohman (10:47), Gilberto Macedo (10:50), and Kaden Van Uffelen (10:53) were all successful in breaking the 11 minute barrier and finishing in the top 6. The girls race winner for the second year in a row was Senior standout Ellie Palmer who comfortably won the race by nearly two minutes in a time of 12:08. Bella Alonzo (13:49), Emma De Jager (14:06), Audrey Alexander (14:10), and Kaylie Whitaker (14:36) rounded out the top 5. There were many other outstanding performances and every student-athlete who competed in last years time trial improved upon their time. Awesome job out their T-Birds! Keep up the great work!
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Time Trial Results
Girls 1 & 2 Mile Results (Click Here)
Boys 1 & 2 Mile Results (Click Here)
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Team Roster
2024 Boys Team Roster (Click Here)
2024 Girls Team Roster (Click Here)
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Big Bear Invites
Big Bear Training Camp Boys Roster (Click Here)
Big Bear Training Camp Girls Roster (Click Here)
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2024 Cross Country Season Information
Communication Apps
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Instagram: @yhsxc
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Remind App: Parents Text @yhscross to 81010 Student-Athletes Text @yhscountry to 81010
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Strava: Yucaipa High Cross Country 2024
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IMPORTANT DATES
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Pre-Season Practices
Tuesdays & Fridays June 10th- July 7th:
(7:00-8:30AM @ Yucaipa Community Park)
Every Tuesday and Friday during the months of June and early July, we will host student-athlete lead practices. These are not mandatory but are a great way to get some early training in and meet some of the student-athletes on the team. These practices are led by the upperclassmen and a coach will not always be present. If you are in town and need to get your run in, join your teammates and get in shape for the upcoming season in July.
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Physicals
May 30th, 2024 (2:00-5:00PM @YHS GYM)
You must have a physical to participate. The physical must be uploaded to the Home Campus website. Physicals expire every year so you must renew it each season. No physical, no practice. There are no exceptions! Please complete the online athletic clearance form before the physical. $25.
Online Athletic Clearance (Click Here)
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Start of Summer Practice
July 8th
(Mon-Fri: 6-8:00AM @YHS Track Stadium)
(Saturday: 6-8:00AM @ Yucaipa Community Park)
This marks the start of the official season. All athletes are invited to participate. Selections for the Big Bear High Altitude Training Camp will be made this week. Practices will be held Monday-Saturday. Monday through Friday will be at 6am at YHS and Saturday practice times and locations may vary. This is a continuation of the preseason conditioning offered by the Pre-Season Practices.
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7th Street Pool Party/ Parent Meeting
July 10th
(12:00-3:00PM @ Yucaipa 7th Street Pool)
This is a great opportunity to hang out and meet your new teammates for the season, as well as for new parents to meet the coaching staff and the booster club. Entry is free and we ask that each athlete bring food for a "Potluck" style lunch. Entrees, snacks, and desserts will be needed.
Big Bear High Altitude Training
July 29th- August 4th Camp (Invitation Only)
The qualifications coaches will be looking for to get invited for this trip includes practice attendance, academic eligibility, an updated Strava profile to log May and June mileage, and the time trial standings. The team leaves on a Monday from YHS and returns that Sunday afternoon. Cost is $400 for the 7 day trip. Food, housing, and transportation are provided. This year we will be joining Santiago High School's cross country team which provides a great opportunity to train with an elite level team. Both their boys and girls programs made it to the state championships last season. You don't want to miss this opportunity!
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1st Day of School (Practice from 4:00-6:00pm @YHS)
August 8th
Practices will transition to after school. Depending on the hot weather, some practices may be moved to the morning before school or later in the evening. To take advantage of the Monday late start schedule we will practice at 6:00am those mornings to complete the workout and the weight room session to allow the student-athlete's to go home after school. ​
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ARCHIVES
2023 Season
CBL Finals
The T-Birds hosted the last regular season meet of the year on their home course at the Yucaipa Community Park. As usual the girls JV started off the day with a 3rd place finish as a team. Isabella Miederhoff was the lone finisher in the top 10 with a 9th place finish in a time of 22:04. The girls Varsity finished 4th overall and missed qualifying for CIF as a team. The girls did have an individual qualifier in Ellie Palmer as she finished 4th overall in a time of 18:32 and will be moving on to CIF.
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The most exciting race of the day happened in the boys Varsity race. The Yucaipa boys were in a do or die situation to win the league championship, something they haven't done since 2018. It was winner take all between Yucaipa and their long time rivals Redlands East Valley. The boys put together their best team race of the season to pull off an 11 point victory and secure their first league championship in 5 years. The boys were led by Scott Caricato's (15:31) 4th place finish. Joining Scott in the top 10 were Seth Mueller (6th, 15:51) and Xander Merkwan (8th, 15:56). The boys JV delivered a dominant 19 point victory over Beaumont to remain undefeated in the league and secure the JV championship. The standout performer of the day was freshman transfer Kaden Van Uffelen with his 2nd place finish in a personal best time of 17:17. Joining Kaden in the top 10 was Trent Hohman (3rd, 17:28), Ian Cintron (4th, 17:32), Aiden Pyne (8th, 17:46), and Nathaniel Sahler (10th, 17:49).
Great job to everyone who competed at league finals and congrats on a great season to all those whose season ended on Saturday. The T-Birds will compete next at CIF Prelims at the legendary Mt. SAC course on Saturday, November 11.
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Results
CBL Finals Results (Click Here)
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CBL Meet #2
The T-Birds didn't have to travel far as they headed to Beaumont High School for CBL Meet #2. The day got started off with a strong showing for the girls JV as they placed 2nd as a team behind home school Beaumont. Gwyn Vanderfin was the only T-Bird to finish in the top 10 with a 5th place finish in a time of 21:19 for 3 miles. The girls varsity was up next and delivered one of the most exciting races of the day for the T-Birds. Ellie Palmer was in 3rd place coming on to the last 300 meters of the race on the track and fought hard to the end to win the race in a personal best time of 18:15. Cross Country newcomer Elizabeth O'Brine also ran her fastest race of the season in a time of 19:36, good enough for a 9th place finish.
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The boys Varsity took a tough loss to rivals Redlands East Valley in a narrow 2 point defeat. Scott Caricato (15:36) led the way for the T-Birds with his 5th place finish and was joined in the top 10 by Seth Mueller's (15:59) 9th place finish. The JV boys delivered the only win on the day for the T-Birds with an 8 point victory over Beaumont. The JV squad was led by Freshman transfer Aiden Winter's 2nd place finish in a time of 16:54. Joining Aiden in the top 10 was Trent Hohman (17:28, 6th), Aiden Pyne (17:56, 8th), and Ian Cintron (17:56, 9th).
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The T-Birds will finish up the regular season on October 28th on their home course at the Yucaipa Community Park for the Citrus Belt League Finals. Great job to all the competitors this past weekend.
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Results
CBL Meet #2 Results (Click Here)
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Clovis Invitational/
Intrasquad Time Trial
It was a busy weekend for the T-Bird's.The Varsity squad travelled to Woodward Park in Fresno, home of the state meet course, while the rest of the team stayed home to compete in an intrasquad time trial at the Yucaipa Community Park.
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The varsity girls started off the day strong with their best showing of the season so far by placing 14th out of 42 teams in their race. The girls were led by Ellie Palmer's (20:06) 45th place finish out of 283 total finishers. The top 5 for the girls were rounded out by Elizabeth O'Brine (21:07), Isabella Alonzo (21:33), Bailee Gilsen (21:51), and Codee Gilsen (22:09). The boys varsity finished 9th out of 39 teams in their respective race. The boys were led by Seth Mueller's (16:36) 31st place finish out of 271 competitors. The top 5 for the boys was rounded out by Scott Caricato (16:45), Xander Merkwan (16:54), Archer Avarell (17:03), and Nathan Nielsen (17:37).
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Back in Yucaipa, the athletes were split up into 3 teams representing a Gold team, Blue team, and White team. The athletes competed on the 3 mile league finals course at the Community Park. It was a special day for the freshman as Gwyn Vanderfin ran the fastest girls time of the day in 22:57 and Aidan Winter was the fastest boy in a time of 18:02. The gold team was the overall winner of the competition.
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Great job to everyone who competed this past weekend. The T-Birds will compete again this weekend at Beaumont High School for the CBL Meet #2.
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Results
Clovis Girls Results (Click Here)
Clovis Boys Results (Click Here)
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Intrasquad Time Trial Results (Click Here)
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Citrus Belt League Meet #1
The T-Birds travelled to Cal State San Bernardino to compete in the first of three league meets. The day started with the Girls JV race where Sophomore Kaylie Whitaker narrowly missed out on a win and finished second in a personal best time of 20:23. Joining her in the top 10 was Freshman Sydnee Gilsen in a time of 21:33. These ladies propelled the team to a second place finish. The Girls Varsity was led by Junior Ellie Palmer's 5th place finish in a time of 18:41. The Varsity Girls placed 4th.
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The Varsity Boys pulled out a narrow two point victory over rivals Redlands East Valley. The boys were helped out by top 10 finishes from Senior duo Scott Caricato (4th, 15:48) and Xander Merkwan (6th, 15:52) as well as Junior Seth Mueller (5th, 15:50). It was the Varsity Boys first victory in the league since 2018. The JV Boys saved the best race for last for the T-Birds as they dominated the competition with a 30 point victory over Beaumont. The JV Boys were led by Junior Aiden Pyne's 1st place finish in a time of 17:16. Aiden was assisted with top 10 finishes from teammates Trent Hohman (4th, 17:36), Izrael Merkwan (5th, 17:42), Tucker Gray (6th, 17:47), Angelo Carlo (7th, 17:49), and Ian Cintron (9th, 17:52).
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Great job to everyone who competed! The T-Birds will next compete at the Clovis Invitational in Fresno (Varsity Only) or the So Cal Invitational in Oceanside.
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Results
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Fastback/ Cool Breeze
Invitational
It was a busy day for the T-Bird's cross country teams as the team split up and participated in multiple invitationals on the same day. The majority of the team travelled to the legendary Mt. SAC course to compete in the Fastback Invitational. The day started off well with the Girls Freshman taking 2nd place in their heat, losing by a narrow two point margin. The Freshman girls were led by Sydnee Gilsen's Top 10 finish in a time of 15:14. The next race saw the team take home their first victory of the day as the Freshman boys dominated the competition with a 17 point victory. Top 10 finishes by duo Kaden Van Uffelen (11:55) and Sloan Hirsch (11:59) helped the boys secure the victory. Not to be outodne by the Freshman boys were the Sophomore girls, who also took first place in a narrow 5 point victory. The Sophomore girls were led by top 10 finishes from the trio of Bailee Gilsen (13:59), Kaylie Whitaker (14:29), and Isabella Alonzo (14:43). The Sophomore boys were led by newcomer Ian Cintron's 29th place finish. Another exciting race of the day saw the team capture it's first individual win in the Junior girls race as Ellie Palmer crossed the finish line in 1st place with a narrow 4 point victory. The Junior boys race saw Aiden Pyne led the group with his 19th place finish. The last race of the meet was the Senior girls race where Codee Gilsen finished 25th out of 103 runners in one of the largest races of the day.
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In the evening, the boys varsity travelled to the Pomona Fairplex to compete at the Cool Breeze Invitational. The boys were granted entry into the fastest race of the meet, the coveted Sundown Showdown which featured some of the best teams and individual talents in the state. The boys held their own by finishing 11th out of 29 teams. The team was led by Senior Scott Caricato's 21st place finish in a time of 15:27. Scott was followed by fellow Senior Xander Merkwan (15:55), and the Junior trio of Seth Mueller (16:01), Nathan Nielsen (16:23), and Archer Avarell (16:42) to round out the scoring 5. The T-Birds will compete next at the Woodbridge Invitational on Saturday, September 16th at the Irvine Great Park.
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Results
Cool Breeze Results (Click Here)
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Santiago Time Trial Results
The YHSXC team headed to Ryan Bonaminio Park in Riverside to compete in a 2 mile time trial against Santiago (Corona) High School. This competition is the first for the T-Birds against another school this season. The morning was started off with the girls 2 mile race where Junior Ellie Palmer led the girls with a third place finish in a time of 12:27, a 19 second improvement from her first time trial in July. The rest of the top 5 for the girls was rounded out by fellow Juniors Elizabeth O'Brine (13:30) and Valine Estrada (14:22) and Freshman standouts Gwyn Vanderfin (14:08) and Sydnee Gilsen (14:35).
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The Boys team put on a great performance that saw a majority of the team improve on their time from the first time trial in July. The boys were led by race winner Xander Merkwan in a time of 10:06, a 16 second improvement on the season. The top 5 was rounded out by fellow Senior Scott Caricato (10:17), and the Junior trio of Nathan Nielsen (10:14), Archer Avarell (10:19), and Seth Mueller (10:22).
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It was a great first step in the right direction for the team as they prepare for the first official race at the world famous Mt. SAC cross country course on September 2nd. Keep up the great work T-Birds!
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Time Trial Results
Girls & Boys 2 Mile Results (Click Here)
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Time Trial Results/
Team Roster/
Big Bear Invites
It was a great turnout and a great day for the YHSXC program. Over 50 student-athletes competed in a 1 or 2 mile time trial for an opportunity to make the team and earn an invite to the Big Bear Training Camp. There were some great performances from both the boys and girls teams. The day started off with the Rookies competing in the 1 mile time trial. The boys were led by freshman standout Tucker Gray who completed the 1.06 mile course in a time of 5:44, the only athlete to break the 6 minute mark. The girls were also led by a freshman newcomer in Gwyneth Vanderfin in a time of 7:04. The returning athletes were up next and had to face the rising temperatures and cover double the distance as the rookies in their 2 mile trial. This was no problem for the boys race winner Xander Merkwan (Senior) who covered the course in 10:22. Same could be said for the girls race winner Ellie Palmer (Junior) who pulled away from the field in the last mile to win in a time of 12:46. There were many other promising performances and every student-athlete who competed in last years time trial improved upon their time. Awesome job out their T-Birds! Keep up the great work!
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Time Trial Results
Girls 1 & 2 Mile Results (Click Here)
Boys 1 & 2 Mile Results (Click Here)
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Team Roster
2023 Boys & Girls Team Roster (Click Here)
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Big Bear Invites
Big Bear Training Camp Roster (Click Here)
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2022 Season
2022 CIF Prelims
The Yucaipa Cross Country team had their final race of the season as a team at Mt. SAC during the CIF Southern Section Division I Prelims. The Lady T-Birds kicked off the action in Heat 3 of the Division I races where they encountered tough competition from 4 teams ranked inside the top 15 in the section. The highlight of the race for the T-Birds came from Senior Cali Good's 6th place performance which was good enough to qualify her for next weekend's finals. Cali ran a Mt. SAC lifetime best of 19:04 to claim the final individual qualifying spot. Rounding out the scoring for the Lady T-Birds were Sophomores Ellie Palmer (20:14) and Bella Long (21:53), Junior Natalie Zamora (20:22), and Freshman Kaylie Whitaker (21:55). The girls finished 6th out of 12 teams and failed to qualify for finals for the first time since 2011.
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The boys encountered an equally difficult task of moving on from prelims by facing 4 teams ranked in the top 15 of the section. The boys were led by Junior Xander Merkwan's 16:19 performance. Rounding out the top was Senior Jose Linares (16:59), Junior Scott Caricato (17:13), and Sophomores Nathan Nielsen (17:13) and Seth Mueller (17:25). The boys finished 7th out of 13 teams and haven't qualified for finals since 2018.
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Citrus Belt League Finals
For the final league race of the season, the T-Birds played host for the rest of the league at the beautiful Yucaipa Community Park. This meet was the last race of the season for the majority of student-athletes in each program, with only the top 3 varsity boys and girls teams qualifying for the CIF postseason meets. Each qualifying team can take up to 12 student-athletes to represent them at CIF, and both Yucaipa boys and girls varsity teams were able to qualify for CIF out of one of the toughest leagues in the Inland Empire.
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The day started off with the Girls JV race where the Lady T-Birds took 3rd place as a team. Sophomore Brooke Smith (21:08) led the way for the JV group by placing 5th, followed by Junior Faith Facio's (21:18) 8th place finish and Freshman Kaylie Whitaker's (21:32) 10th place finish, giving the team 3 placers in the top 10. The girls Varsity race was full of action up front as 3 different girls from different teams led the race at one point or another throughout the 3 mile course. In the end, Senior Taylor Becker (18:26) just lost out on being crowned League Champion by finishing second overall in the tightly contested race. Fellow Senior Cali Good (18:36) had her best placing ever at League Finals by finishing 4th and Sophomore Ellie Palmer (19:07) finished 8th to give the group 3 placers in the top 10 and earning All-League honors. The girls team placed 3rd overall.
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The Boys Varsity were able to improve from their 3rd place finish at CBL Meet #2 by placing 2nd overall at CBL Finals, narrowly beating fellow rivals REV by 2 points. Junior Xander Merkwan saved his best performance of the season for these Finals by placing 3rd overall and running a Personal Best 15:42 on the tough home course. Fellow Junior Scott Caricato (16:00) also had a solid performance by placing 6th overall, giving the boys two in the top 10 that received All-League honors. The day was capped off with the boys JV placing 2nd as a team, a massive improvement throughout the season from placing 5th at the first League Meet and 3rd at the second League Meet. Sophomore Archer Avarell ran a personal best of 17:30 to place 3rd overall. Fellow Sophomore Aiden Pyne (18:01) and Junior Richard Carlson (18:17) placed 8th and 9th respectively, giving the JV boys 3 inside the top 10.
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The team is now down to just 12 boys and girls moving on into the postseason to prepare for CIF Prelims on Friday, November 11th. Congratulations on a fantastic season for all who competed in their final race and best of luck to all the T-Birds representing the program at CIF.
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Citrus Belt League Meet #2
It was a gloomy, wet morning at Redlands East Valley High School, host of the second CBL meet. Cooler weather and a flat course presented the
T-Bird student-athletes with a great opportunity to chase after a personal best time. The Girls JV race kicked off the action and Sophomore Allison Shreve took full advantage of the great racing conditions by snagging a huge PR of 20:08, over a minute faster than her previous best, and good enough to finish second in the race. Fellow sophomore Brooke Smith (21:04) was the only other top 10 finisher in that race placing 8th. The girls varsity placed third in the race, losing out to race winner Citrus Valley and a surprise second place finish from Beaumont. Senior Cali Good also took full advantage of the great conditions to snag a PR of 18:16 which was good enough to finish 3rd overall in the race. Junior Natalie Zamora (19:14) also ran a nice PR and was the only other top 10 finisher for the T-Birds placing 9th.
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The boys varsity team had a solid day but unfortunately came up against two teams that were slightly better. The boys finished 3rd behind race winners Citrus Valley and narrowly missing out on second place by 1 point to host school REV. Senior Jose Linares (15:46) and Junior duo Xander Merkwan (15:55) and Scott Caricato (15:56) all placed inside the top 10. In the boys JV race Sophomores Angilo Trejo (17:48) and Archer Avarell (17:53) were the lone top 10 finishers.
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The T-Birds will take this weekend off from racing to prepare for the following weekends Citrus Belt League Finals hosted by yours truly at the Yucaipa Community Park.
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Clovis Invitational/ Perris Valley XC Showdown
It was a busy weekend for the T-Bird cross country team as the program had simultaneous races happening 300 miles apart. The varsity squad road-tripped up to Fresno to get a preview of the State Meet course at the 2022 Clovis Invitational. The course was the first 5k the team has encountered this season. The girls started off the day with a phenomenal 3rd place finish out of 36 teams in the XL Varsity Girls race. Taylor Becker led the group with a 5th place finish in a solid time of 18:49. Cali Good finished 15th with a solid 19:30. Ellie Palmer (20:29), Natalie Zamora (20:51), and Bailee Gilsen (21:01) rounded out the scoring. The boys encountered some tough competition along with some warmer weather for their race. The boys finished 23rd out of 38 teams on the day. Xander Merkwan led the way for the boys with a time of 16:58. Scott Caricato (17:21), Seth Mueller (17:22), Jose Linares (17:50), and Nathan Nielsen (18:07) rounded out the scoring for the boys.
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Back closer to home, the rest of the team competed at the Perris Valley XC Showdown at Lake Perris State Recreation Area. The Girls Frosh/Soph kicked off the day where Allison Shreve (21:32) and Emerson Miller (22:21) placed in the top 10. The Boys Frosh/Soph finished in 4th out of 13 teams with Sophomore duo Angilo Trejo (18:33) and Archer Avarell (18:34) leading the way for the boys. The final race of the day was the Girls Jr-Sr race where the team walked away with an incredible 2nd place finish. Amyah Erickson (21:10) and Faith Facio (21:53) finished 3rd and 4th overall to lead the way.
The team is really hitting their stride as the end of the season draws near. The T-Birds will be back in action this Saturday, October 15th at Prospect Park in Redlands for the CBL Meet #2.
Clovis Invitational Results (Click Here)
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Perris Valley XC Showdown Results (Click Here)
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Citrus Belt League Meet #1
The T-Bird Cross Country team traveled to San Bernardino to compete at the first Citrus Belt League meet against it's local competitors at Cajon High School. The meet included 4 races starting with the Girls Junior Varsity race where Freshman Kaylie Whitaker (21:13) led the way with an impressive 3rd place finish in only her 2nd 3 mile race of her young career. Sophomore Allison Shreve (21:30) and Freshman Emerson Miller (21:58) also placed in the Top 10. The next race was the Girls Varsity where the team finished second overall scoring 47 points, just ahead of Beaumonts 55 points and behind race winners Citrus Valley's 35 points. Senior Taylor Becker (18:05) finished second and went wire to wire with eventual race winner Hannah Butterfield (18:02) of Beaumont. Junior Cali Good (19:00), Sophomore Ellie Palmer (19:16), Junior Natalie Zamora (19:41), and Freshman Bailee Gilsen (20:24) rounded out the scoring for the Lady T-Birds.
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The Boys Varsity had an exciting showdown with defending League Champions Citrus Valley. The T-Birds narrowly missed out on victory scoring 51 points to Citrus Valleys 45. The Boys were led by Senior Jose Linares (15:59) 4th place performance. Juniors Scott Caricato and Xander Merkwan both ran 16:12 to finish 7th and 8th place overall. Sophomores Seth Mueller (16:17) and Nathan Nielsen (16:54) rounded out the scoring for the T-Birds. The final race of the day was the Boys Junior Varsity where Sophomores Izrael Merkwan (18:35) and Cameron Petinak (19:16) had top 10 finishes.
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The team will take next weekend off to focus on training in order to prepare for the Clovis Invitational and the Perris Valley XC Showdown on October 8th.
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2022 Woodbridge
Invitational
The T-Bird Cross Country team competed at one of the largest cross county invitationals in the country, the 2022 Woodbridge Invitational. The meet is so large that it is held over the course of two days with over 200 schools from all across the country making the journey to Orange County Great Park in Irvine, California. The majority of the T-Birds competed on Thursday night with the girls varsity racing on Friday night in the ultra-competitive rated race.
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The action kicked off on Thursday evening with the Girls JV race where Seniors Amyah Erickson (21:07) and Rianna Ammons (21:16) led the way for the group. Next up were the Freshman girls led by Kaylie Whitaker's (21:07) 18th place finish. The Freshman boys were led by Rafael Hernandez (20:49). The Sophomore boys were led by Aiden Pyne (18:06). And the last non-varsity race was the boys Junior race led by REV transfer Richard Carlson (18:01).
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The Varsity boys finished night one of the two day meet with an excellent 5th place finish in the Boys Red Varsity B race. The T-Birds were led by Senior Jose Linares' 8th place finish and a new 3 Mile PR of 15:23. Junior Xander Merkwan also broke the 16:00 minute barrier with his 23rd place finish in 15:43. Junior Scott Caricato (16:03) and Sophomore duo Nathan Nielsen (16:22) and Seth Mueller (16:27) rounded out the scoring for the T-Birds, all achieving life time bests for 3 miles.
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The Lady T-Birds returned to compete on Friday night in the premier Rated Race where they finished 20th out of 34 schools from all across the country including Nevada, Colorado, Texas, and Utah. Senior Taylor Becker had the best race of her cross country career by breaking the 18 minute barrier running 17:45 and placing 24th out of 226 runners in the race. Her time was also good enough to finish Top 10 in San Bernardino County schools at the event. Senior Cali Good (18:34) and Sophomore Ellie Palmer (18:57) were able to break the 19 minute barrier. Junior Natalie Zamora (19:25) and Isabella Long (19:43) rounded out the scoring for the Lady T-Birds.
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The T-Birds will be back in action next weekend at Cajon High School for the first of three Citrus Belt League meets against local rivals Beaumont, Redlands, Redlands East Valley, Citrus Valley, and Cajon.
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2022 Fastback Invitational
The T-Bird Cross Country team headed out to the legendary Mt. SAC course this weekend to compete at the Fastback Invitational. Due to the extreme heat the course was modified from it's original 2 mile layout to a 1.8 version that skipped one of the most dreaded and famous hills on the course, Poopout. Despite the adjusted course, the conditions forced the race directors to modify it a 3rd time for the final races of the day. Only the Seniors ran the 1.4 modified version.
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The heat did not slow down the action for the T-Birds as the team walked away from the meet with incredible performances. The freshman boys kicked off the race where 9th grader Tyler Marcroff lead his teammates with a 68th place finish. For the freshman girls Bailee Gilsen finished 12th overall to lead the way. The boys sophomores had the best team performance as the only group big enough to field a scoring 5. The team placed 2nd overall lead by outstanding top 10 performances from Seth Mueller (8th Overall) and Nathan Nielsen (10th Overall). The sophomore girls had Ellie Palmer's 5th place performance lead the way for that group. The boys junior race produced another top 10 performance for the T-Birds as Scott Caricato finished 10th. The girls junior race was led by Natalie Zamora's 14th place finish and not far behind her was teammate Faith Facio in 17th.
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The race then called an audible because of the heat and changed the course to 1.4 miles which skipped the hills altogether. Lone senior Jose Linares placed 13th in a very competitive field. The biggest high light of the day came from 12th grader Cali Good who took home 1st place in the girls senior race! Her performance was the fastest of the day on the modified course and the only girl to break the 8 minute barrier.
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The T-Birds will take next weekend off from competing and get back to training. The next competition is Thursday evening, September 15th at the Woodbridge Invitational. Keep it up T-Birds!
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WE RUN THIS TOWN!!!
