EL SEGUNDO HERALD December 6, 2018 Page 5
Eagles X-Country Girls Complete an Historic Season at State Meet
By Gregg McMullin
The El Segundo High School cross country
program has been on the rise for years, thanks
in part to the program’s head coach Marcos
Bolanos. The 2018 season may have been the
best season for the girls team in school history.
They capped their remarkable season with a
third place finish at the California CIF State
championships.
The season started with the Eagles hosting
the inaugural Eagle XC Invitational held at
the Lake. The Eagles finished first by besting
some of the top programs in the Southland.
Next up was the Woodbridge Invitational where
the Eagles participates in the Sweepstakes
race, which is exclusives for the top teams in
the Western United States. Their team time
was the fastest of any of the participants on
a 3-mile course in California.
Being asked to run in the Seattle Hole in
The Wall Invitational is reserved for some of
the top programs from Washington, Oregon,
Nevada and California. The Eagles placed all
five top scorers in the top 10 runners in their
division. James Matlosz won the race, while
Sophia Zago finished third, Nikki Fulcomer
fifth and Gabby Lee rounded out the scorers
with a seventh place finish.
Competing in the challenging Ocean League
has been successful for the El Segundo girls
cross country team. For the fourth consecutive
season, the Eagles won the league title. Lee, a
four varsity runner, led the Eagles by finishing
second. The pack running strategy worked with
Zago (3), James Matlosz (4) and Fulcomer (5)
rounding out the top five. Tyler Matlosz ran
a PR race finishing 10th while juniors Letina
Daniel and Leah Guziak each ran their best
race of the season and finished in the top 15.
Next up was the CIF-SS finals where the
Eagles finished third for the second consecutive
year. Fulcomer ran perhaps her best race
of the year and that helped propel her team
to the podium. James Matlosz, Lee, Zago,
Tyler Matlosz, Daniel and Erin Rifkin each
ran a calculated race and joined Fulcomer on
the podium.
The run to the CIF State championships
had been a long and great road traveled. The
Eagles would run a calculated race that would
end up cementing this team in school history
with a third place finish.
The State meet was an amazing day for the
Eagles and the program as a whole. Finishing
third in the CIF finals the week before,
it helped punch their ticket to the State meet.
The team felt that that they had let a second
place finish slip through their hands. So they
used a different strategy to run a better second
mile and finish strong.
The Eagles’ biggest asset is their top five
runners that can pack in close with a tight
scoring gap, which ultimately propelled them
to the podium. Of the top four teams, El Segundo
had the narrowest gap between their
first and fifth runners. During the race, the
Eagles really fought for each other and knew
at the 2-mile mark that every runner they could
pass would help them reach the top three and
a place in history on the podium.
When the first runners were coming through
the finish chute, the scoring screen was to
the right of the finish line displaying team
results. Runner after runner crossed the finish
line and team placement was constantly being
updated. El Segundo was initially third, but
The Lady Eagles won the prestigious Nike Invitational Hole in The Wall X-Country by defeating top teams from Washington, Oregon
and California. Photo by Marcos Bolanos.
after more runners crossed the line the Eagles
were pushed down to fourth. El Segundo was
battling Harvard Westlake for third place and
this was the same team that nudged the Eagles
to third place in the CIF finals.
The back and forth progression of changing
places between third and fourth continued. At
one point, it showed El Segundo and Harvard
Westlake tied at a 194 team score. Coach
Bolanos said it was an anxious time trying to
figure out if his sixth runner had finished before
the Harvard Westlake sixth runner. When the
scoreboard was updated the big board showed
El Segundo 193, Harvard Westlake 195. It
turned out to be the thinnest of margins to
make the podium that day.
El Segundo’s historic day and a place in
school history were led by Fulcomer and
James Matlosz respectively who finished
simultaneously with Fulcomer edging out
Matlosz. Zago had a strong day and finished
as the third Eagle. One of the biggest surprises
of the day came from freshman Tyler Matlosz,
who finished fourth and really cemented the
team’s place on the podium. She had a stellar
season ranking as the all-time fastest freshman
girl in school history. Four-year runner senior
Lee rounded out the top five Eagle runners
with a PR performance. Daniel came through
as the Eagles’ sixth runner and finished ahead
of Harvard Westlake’s fifth runner. Guziak
rounded out the team with an impressive
finish. The alternates included two freshmen,
Isabella Mai and Erin Rifkin. They finished
the season ranked in the top eight all-time
freshman runners.
This was a truly magical ending for our two
seniors, Nicolette Fulcomer and Gabby Lee.
They both are four-year lettermen and have
had solid careers. They have helped elevate
the program to one of the top XC programs
in Southern California. Consider that during
their tenure, they have helped the Eagles win
four consecutive Ocean League titles, placed
on the podium in two out of state Nike Invitational
meets, ranked in the top 10 in state
the past three consecutive years and created
a culture of success.
With five of the team’s top runners returning,
an impressive number of underclassmen
returning and more hard work to come, it
should translate into continued success. The
team will have all eyes set on a higher podium
finish next year.
The Lady Eagles pose with head coach Marcos Bolanos during the presentation of their third place finish at the CIF State
Championships. Photo by Marcos Bolanos.
Here is some perspective on how hard it is
to make the podium and why these athletes
should be treated like rock stars. There are approximately
1,600 XC teams in the state across
five divisions. Only the top three teams take a
podium spot in each division. The California
CIF State Finals have been going on for 30
years now, starting in 1987. During that time,
only 141 schools (girls teams) have touched the
podium. There are a lot of schools that have
monopolies over the top three spots. For El
Segundo to finally crack the top three places on
the podium is truly a remarkable accomplishment.
Move over soccer, baseball, volleyball,
water polo, softball, football, swimming and,
yes, the 1963 basketball team… There’s another
championship sport on campus.
Girls Basketball Proving
Worthy of Ranking
The Eagles didn’t make the postseason last
year and they have a new coach, but there are
those in the know who see something in the
team this season. El Segundo is ranked fourth
in the first CIF Southern Section Division 3A
Division. They improved to 5-2 on the season
after defeating Bassett 58-29. The ball movement
and crisp passing has elevated the Eagles’
overall play. Couple that with their aggressive
defense and you can see why they are worthy
of their ranking.
The Eagles are 10-deep in the rotation of
players with little drop-off when a substitute
player enters the game. In fact, head coach
John Peterson often will substitute for all five
players on the floor at one time. Malia Hue has
become one of the top threats off the bench.
She sank a three-pointer the first time she had
the ball and it helped propel her team to a 9-0
lead. Later in the first quarter, her easy layup
extended the lead to 17-4. El Segundo went
on to outscore the Olympians 26-11 in the
second half and cruise to the win.
Hue and Story Noble each had 11 points
to lead the Eagles. Reese Jones had a great
defensive game, leading her team with six
rebounds and six steals. The Eagles play in
the Valley Christian Tournament this week.
Next week, Ocean League play starts with El
Segundo visiting Hawthorne on Wednesday at
6 p.m. and Beverly Hills next Friday at 6 p.m.
Boys Basketball Looking Good
The Eagles have started out 6-4 on the season.
They traveled to Long Beach Cabrillo last night
and were expected to improve their record to
7-4 when they faced the Jaguars. The Eagles’
only home game in December is Friday night
at 6 p.m. when they host Da-Vinci Wiseburn
-- one of the top-ranked teams in their division.
Next week, the Eagles open up Ocean League
play on the road when they visit Hawthorne
on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. and Beverly Hills
on Friday at 7:30 p.m. •
Douglass
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