Mounties Sweep Team Titles at 75th Mt. SAC XC Invite
Mt. SAC’s Jordan Galindo, Hartnell’s Andrea Villegas win individual crowns in Community College Division
By Landon Negri for DyeStat
WALNUT, Calif. – It didn’t take long for Mt. San Antonio College freshman Jordan Galindo to go from the sidelines to being on the starting line Friday morning.
He certainly wasn’t expecting to be a hero.
But that’s what he proved to be as he helped the host Mounties sweep by successfully defending their turf with Community College Division team victories at the 75th Mt. SAC Cross Country Invitational presented by NIKE.
With the top-ranked men’s program in the state, Galindo ran the 4-mile race at Mt. SAC in 21:08.6.
He helped Mt. SAC place five scorers in the top eight and contributed to 15 Mounties finishing in the top 30 overall, as they eased to victory with 23 points against second-place Hartnell (79 points) and third-place Glendale (89).
The margin was smaller – 50-68 against Glendale Community College – for the top-ranked women, but just as impressive, considering Shandy Moore, who finished seventh, was their only runner to eclipse the 20-minute barrier in the 3-mile race.
Hartnell sophomore Andrea Villegas won her fifth invitational victory of the season, besting the field in 18:05.3.
Friday’s win had special meaning to Galindo, as he said he missed much of last season with a ruptured Achilles at Cal State Fullerton.
In fact, he said only found out late in the week that he’d be running Friday.
“It means a lot to me, because my whole last year, I was at Cal State Fullerton and I was injured the whole year,” he said.
He likes the way things are going so far this season.
“I came to Mt. SAC to find an opportunity,” he said, “and good things are working out well for me. I took advantage of it and now that I am here, I’m able to call myself a Mt. SAC champion.”
Galindo also got to experience the first time running a 4-mile course at Mt. SAC, which meant the first time experiencing a second trip up the switchbacks in the race’s final mile, a stretch he said “that was hell.”
“There was no way I could go up the hill one more time,” Galindo said. “And I did. But good thing the downhill was there. I took advantage of it, watched myself (and) tried to stay safe.”
Behind Galindo, the race was fairly tight and competitive.
Hartnell freshman Moises Benito placed second in 21:11.9 in his first Mt. SAC experience.
“First time doing those switchbacks, first time doing Poopout (hill),” Benito said. “The videos looked a lot easier.”
Continue reading HERE.
Complete race results HERE.
For more on the iconic meet, including division information, course maps, teams, parking, results, history and more, go to: runmtsac.com/invite/