Alexis Noble leads San Diego Mesa to 68-91 victory against two-time state champion Mt. SAC, as Olympians continue quest for first CCCAA women’s title since 1994; Jyden Schmid prevails in men’s competition, but Mounties triumph by 40-43 margin, setting stage for memorable final in Fresno

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

LONG BEACH, Calif. – The final miles of the men’s and women’s races Friday at the California Community College Athletic Association Southern California Regional Championships were an indication of the motivation of one team to finally return to the top of the state podium after nearly 30 years and the determination of another lineup to hold on to its title for at least one more season.

San Diego Mesa College turned a slight deficit against Mt. San Antonio College at the 2-mile mark into a runaway victory in the women’s 5-kilometer race, with freshman Alexis Noble leading the Olympians to a 68-91 triumph at El Dorado Regional Park.

Mt. SAC withstood an impressive comeback from San Diego Mesa and sophomore Jyden Schmid in the men’s 4-mile competition, with the reigning state champion Mounties emerging victorious by a 40-43 margin to secure the program’s first regional crown since 2018.

RESULTS | INTERVIEWS

Schmid prevailed in 19 minutes, 9.4 seconds, rebounding from a third-place finish Oct. 6 at the Manny Bautista Invitational to establish himself as a top contender Nov. 18 for the state individual title at Woodward Park in Fresno following a 24th-place finish in last year’s final.

Mt. SAC responded with Johnathon Zavala finishing second in 19:15.7, Matthew Donis – the winner at Manny Bautista – placing fourth in 19:30.5, Jordan Galindo securing sixth in 19:49.2, Christian De Loye taking 11th in 20:04.9 and Joel Fischer earning 17th in 20:10.5 for the Mounties.

San Diego Mesa, which was edged by a 33-35 margin against Mt. SAC at Manny Bautista, received a third-place effort from Victor Rosas in 19:18.3, with Alex Leroy finishing 10th in 20:03.5, Joseph DePascale achieving 13th in 20:07.0 and Allen Malo capturing 16th in 20:10.5, an identical mark to Fischer for the Mounties.

The Olympians had won the past three men’s regional titles, including a 31-74 victory last year against Mt. SAC at Kern County Soccer Complex in Bakersfield. The Mounties rebounded to capture the state championship by a 59-62 margin at Woodward Park, the fourth in program history.

Bakersfield College took third with 99 points, led by Nathanael Rodriguez finishing seventh in 19:52.7 for the Renegades.

Ernesto Ruiz was fifth in 19:30.8 for Riverside, which placed fourth overall at 141 points.

Jimmy Dominguez earned eighth for Orange Coast College in 19:56.2 and Anthony Erikson took ninth for Cuesta College in 19:59.7.

With six athletes separated by a two-second margin entering the final mile of the women’s competition, Noble made a decisive move in the last kilometer and never relinquished control, clocking 17:44.6.

San Diego Mesa also had Joelle Tonne (18:47.7) in 13th, Sophie Moser-Smith (18:48.8) in 15th and Kyana Cook (18:50.3) in 17th, in addition to Madison Decker placing 32nd in 19:26.4, with all four athletes improving their position in the final mile of the race.

The Olympians were sixth at the 2021 regional final and runner-up to Mt. SAC last season, but after holding off the Mounties by a 44-83 margin at Manny Bautista, along with a 23-point victory Friday, San Diego Mesa remains driven to secure the program’s first women’s state championship since 1994.

Aariana Amezcua led Mt. SAC by finishing fifth in 17:58.9, with Ingrid Tamayo taking 19th in 18:51.0, Natalyn Membreno capturing 21st in 19:06.2, Shandy Moore securing 25th in 19:16.4 and Tigist Bergman grabbing 33rd in 19:26.5 for the two-time state champion Mounties, who are seeking their first three-peat in women’s program history.

Ventura’s Sophia Godina placed second in 17:47.2, Glendale’s Samantha Medrano took third in 17:47.8, El Camino’s Sequoia Gonzales finished fourth in 17:49.6 and East L.A. College’s Marbella Flores secured sixth in 18:02.4.

Riverside, led by ninth-place finisher Nadia Munoz (18:37.8), took third as a team at 134 points. Glendale was fourth with 170 points and Allan Hancock College – with Itandehui Olea earning eighth in 18:35.7 – placed fifth at 176 points.

Danna Ibarra Canales (18:28.7) captured seventh for Saddleback and Ami Jacobson took 10th in 18:43.3 for El Camino.

Clovis swept both men’s and women’s team titles Friday at the Northern California Regional Championships at Hidden Valley Park in Martinez.

Andrea Villegas (18:20.7) and Roselyn Olivo (18:39.0) took the first two spots for Hartnell, but Clovis had five competitors in the top 20 to triumph by a 40-62 margin in the women’s race.

Clovis edged Hartnell with an 89-93 victory in the men’s race, followed by American River College taking third at 95 points.

Johnny Sandoval, a freshman at San Joaquin Delta, prevailed in the 4-mile competition in 20:59.9.