The Kern Valley cross country teams got the chance to see what the league competition will be like as they took part in the HDL Invitational in Bishop. The race took place on September 18. Kern Valley took a total of 13 runners to compete in the races. The Lady Broncs team had six runners, while the boys team saw seven runners compete. The course laid out is one of the toughest that the teams will face this season.
There was a total of 35 girls that participated in the girls race. After all the runners had crossed the line, the Lady Broncs finished second to Mammoth. Kern Valley’s team score was 44, while the Lady Huskies of Mammoth scored 31.
Aspen Hacker led the Lady Broncs squad as she ran to a first-place finish. Her time of 22.33 was the fastest recorded for the race. Coming in sixth place was Greta Boettcher in a time of 25.53. Two places later, Tabitha Cazares crossed the line in a time of 27.59. Faith Kirby came in 12th with a time of 29.07 and Kassandra Guarneros finished in 17th place with a time of 30.26. Kyal Hacker recorded a DNF in the race.
Head coach Kenny Bushling said, “The course is a tough course located in the mountains west of Bishop. The beginning of the last mile features a grueling quarter-mile hill that is an exercise in both physical and mental toughness. Aspen Hacker continues to impress and be at the top of competitions. Greta is improving with each practice and every race. She will be a large part of our goal to make the podium at CIF. Freshman new comer, Tabitha Cazares ran an impressive race. She is really coming on.”
In the boys’ race there were a total of 40 runners that started the race. The top finisher for the Broncs was Logan Sampson. He would take sixth place in the race. Sabastion Stallone followed in 17th place, while Ethan Mauer was right behind in the 18th spot. Angel Oliveras came in 20th, while Dario Jones was 30th. Matthew Leonez was the 34th place finisher, while Luis Lopez came across the line in 37th place to round out the Kern Valley runners.
Bushling commented, “Sampson, is getting better with each race and is among the top runners in the HDL. Senior Stallone is always solid and as he continues to get in running shape will do well in league. Luis Lopez ran in his first race ever and did a great job on a tough course, especially with the tough hill climb at the end of the race. The group of freshmen are improving and learning perseverance and gaining toughness. Each of them is doing well.”
The Kern Valley teams will make a return trip to Bishop today to begin individual HDL meets. Then the following day another invite is on the table. They will compete in the Raider Invite at Oxnard College in Oxnard.
Kern Valley sizes up HDL opponents at invite
