Weaver, Naranjo rule first conference run

2026 PREP CROSS COUNTRY

Highlanders place 5 scoring runners among first 17 girls; Wolf Pack puts 5 boys in top 9

By East County Sports staff

SPRING VALLEY — Kate Weaver and Luis Naranjo captured the individual championships, while the Helix girls and West Hills boys raced to commanding team victories in the season’s first Grossmont Conference cluster meet Friday at Steele Canyon High School.

Weaver, a Helix senior, completed the girls’ 2.5-mile course in 15 minutes, 27.80 seconds, leading the Highlanders to the first two finishing positions and a 38–85 team victory over Grossmont.

Freshman Ryan Mitchell made an impressive conference debut for Helix, placing second in a personal-best 16:00.44. Grossmont senior Jane Telliard finished third in 16:15.74, while Mount Miguel junior Nadia Aguilar was fourth in 16:41.75.

Grossmont senior Raya Dann completed the first five in 16:44.73.

Helix placed four runners among the first 10. Sophomores Isella Nava and Naomi Zudiker joined Weaver and Mitchell by finishing eighth and 10th, respectively. Senior Joy Lewis supplied the Highlanders’ fifth scoring result in 17th place.

That gave Helix 38 points, 47 fewer than runner-up Grossmont.

Host Steele Canyon placed third with 100 points, eight ahead of West Hills. Monte Vista finished fifth with 112, followed closely by Mount Miguel with 115 and El Capitan with 125.

Monte Vista received consecutive top-seven finishes from junior Melissa Velazquez Varela, who placed sixth in 16:58.00, and sophomore Mariella Ferrer, who was seventh with a personal-best 17:13.83.

El Capitan sophomore Riley McGhen finished ninth in 17:24.99.

Steele Canyon freshmen Maja Saja and Olivia Cookson crossed consecutively in 11th and 12th, both recording personal-best performances. Mount Miguel freshman Aracely Sanchez placed 13th, and West Hills freshman Jaylen Wiewel followed in 14th.

NARANJO BREAKS 16-MINUTE MARK

Naranjo entered the boys’ race with one uncomplicated objective.

“I’m feeling great and ready to run,” the Grossmont senior said before the start. “The number one goal is to win. I’m just trying to win this race.”

He did precisely that.

Naranjo won the three-mile race in a season-best 15:59.22, finishing as the meet’s only runner under 16 minutes. He crossed 13.80 seconds ahead of West Hills junior Lucas Trogus, who placed second with a personal-best 16:13.02.

“Good race and good effort by everyone out there,” Naranjo said. “Time to get ready for River Park.”

Although Naranjo secured the individual championship, West Hills controlled the team competition.

The Wolf Pack placed all five of its scoring runners among the first nine and finished with only 25 points, defeating runner-up Helix by 46.

After Trogus crossed in second, West Hills senior Helio Cortez placed third in 16:45.96. Seniors Ryan Revak and Fox Hermanson finished fifth and sixth, respectively, before sophomore Matthew Stinchfield completed the Wolf Pack scoring in ninth with a personal-best 17:20.48.

West Hills’ five scoring places—second, third, fifth, sixth and ninth—produced its near-perfect winning total.

Mount Miguel senior Jose Mariscal separated the West Hills runners by placing fourth with a personal-best 16:55.70.

The Matadors nearly overtook Helix for second place in the team standings. Helix finished with 71 points, while Mount Miguel recorded 74.

Mount Miguel placed four runners among the first 12. Mariscal was followed by seniors David Gonzalez in seventh, Iker Quintero in 11th and Marcelino Esquivel in 12th. All four recorded personal-best times.

Sophomore Conan Connolly led Helix by placing eighth with a personal-best 17:13.72. Junior Tyler Kinnard finished 10th, junior Ash Carr was 13th and freshman Nate Madrid placed 14th.

Grossmont finished fourth with 111 points despite Naranjo’s victory. El Capitan placed fifth with 124, followed by Granite Hills, Monte Vista, Steele Canyon and Santana.

COUGARS FLASH JV DEPTH

Steele Canyon displayed its developing depth by sweeping the first six positions in the boys’ 2.5-mile junior-varsity race.

Freshman Michael Ellis won in a personal-best 15:03.73, more than 33 seconds ahead of freshman teammate Tristan Castaneda, who finished in 15:37.09.

Granite Hills junior Angel Arista interrupted Steele Canyon’s run of scoring places by finishing third overall in 15:37.36, but the Eagles runner competed outside the official JV scoring sequence.

Steele Canyon freshmen Ethan Via and Bryson Robertson, along with sophomore Aidan Arriaga-Romero, followed Castaneda across the line. The four Cougars were separated by fewer than 15 seconds.

The meet included 214 finishers across the boys’ varsity, girls’ varsity and boys’ junior-varsity competitions.

GROSSMONT CONFERENCE CLUSTER NO. 1

At Steele Canyon High School
Friday, Sept. 4

GIRLS

2.5 miles

Team scores: 1. Helix 38; 2. Grossmont 85; 3. Steele Canyon 100; 4. West Hills 108; 5. Monte Vista 112; 6. Mount Miguel 115; 7. El Capitan 125.

Leading finishers: 1. Kate Weaver, Helix, 15:27.80; 2. Ryan Mitchell, Helix, 16:00.44; 3. Jane Telliard, Grossmont, 16:15.74; 4. Nadia Aguilar, Mount Miguel, 16:41.75; 5. Raya Dann, Grossmont, 16:44.73; 6. Melissa Velazquez Varela, Monte Vista, 16:58.00; 7. Mariella Ferrer, Monte Vista, 17:13.83; 8. Isella Nava, Helix, 17:16.38; 9. Riley McGhen, El Capitan, 17:24.99; 10. Naomi Zudiker, Helix, 17:31.05; 11. Maja Saja, Steele Canyon, 17:31.76; 12. Olivia Cookson, Steele Canyon, 17:34.55; 13. Aracely Sanchez, Mount Miguel, 17:38.05; 14. Jaylen Wiewel, West Hills, 17:38.82; 15. Roxanne Ocampo, Mount Miguel, 18:01.39.

BOYS

3 miles

Team scores: 1. West Hills 25; 2. Helix 71; 3. Mount Miguel 74; 4. Grossmont 111; 5. El Capitan 124; 6. Granite Hills 173; 7. Monte Vista 180; 8. Steele Canyon 183; 9. Santana 229.

Leading finishers: 1. Luis Naranjo, Grossmont, 15:59.22; 2. Lucas Trogus, West Hills, 16:13.02; 3. Helio Cortez, West Hills, 16:45.96; 4. Jose Mariscal, Mount Miguel, 16:55.70; 5. Ryan Revak, West Hills, 16:59.29; 6. Fox Hermanson, West Hills, 17:07.38; 7. David Gonzalez, Mount Miguel, 17:12.83; 8. Conan Connolly, Helix, 17:13.72; 9. Matthew Stinchfield, West Hills, 17:20.48; 10. Tyler Kinnard, Helix, 17:23.50; 11. Iker Quintero, Mount Miguel, 17:34.11; 12. Marcelino Esquivel, Mount Miguel, 17:39.40; 13. Ash Carr, Helix, 17:44.41; 14. Nate Madrid, Helix, 17:44.76; 15. Abednego Cruz, Steele Canyon, 17:45.47.

BOYS JUNIOR VARSITY

2.5 miles

Leading finishers: 1. Michael Ellis, Steele Canyon, 15:03.73; 2. Tristan Castaneda, Steele Canyon, 15:37.09; 3. Angel Arista, Granite Hills, 15:37.36; 4. Ethan Via, Steele Canyon, 15:37.59; 5. Aidan Arriaga-Romero, Steele Canyon, 15:45.12; 6. Bryson Robertson, Steele Canyon, 15:51.52; 7. Esteban Snyder, El Capitan, 15:59.56; 8. Ryder Blue Wheaton, El Capitan, 16:10.55; 9. Logan Wells, West Hills, 16:12.80; 10. Nicolas Martinez, El Capitan.

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