Jara, Dalton Lead Knights to 3rd Place Finish at SD XC Kickoff Meet

Led by sophomores Diandra Jara and Isabelle Dalton who finished fourth and sixth, respectively, the Knights placed third at the San Diego XC Kickoff on Friday morning. It was the largest field in the meet's 3-year history, which the Knights have co-hosted with Cuyamaca. 

Jara, City's co-captain along with Dalton, picked up where she left off last season and led the Knights once again with a personal best 14:30 time to earn fourth place overall at the 2.1 mile course at Harry Griffen Park in La Mesa.

Dalton, who made her return to racing after a season off, was the sixth runner to cross the finish line with a time of 14:46. 

Sophomores Alicen Garcia (11th; 15:41) and Joscelyn Silva (14th; 16:07) both finished in the top-15, whilte freshman Kai Bethea made the Knights' top-5 in her first collegiate race with a time of 17:12 (20th).

Sophomore Nihal Samaha (27th; 18:42), freshman Isabella Chiuz (31st; 20:20) were the sixth and seventh Knights to finish the race.

Sophomore Mariana Lara, who made her return to racing after sitting last season out due to an injury, finished the course in 22:00 and was followed by sophomore Selena Garcia (23:07).

"We entered the race in the best physical and mental space compared to previous seasons," said head coach Marco Anzures. "I was very happy with how the team prepared and conducted themselves. It is a long season and we use each race as an opportunity to learn something new and challenge ourselves so we are ready for the postseason."

The Knights will compete again next week on Saturday, September 9 at the Cal State University San Bernardino Coyote Challenge, which begins at 8 a.m. 

"I'm excited to take the team to the CSUSB Coyote Invite next week to test ourselves against 4-year universities," said Anzures.

SD XC Kickoff Team Results

1. Saddleback 
2. Cuyamaca
3. San Diego City
4. Southwestern
5. Imperial Valley
6. L.A. Mission

Complete Results