FRESNO, Calif. – Freshman Alyssa Gutierrez placed second out of a field of 216 finishers with a time of 17 minutes, 17.16 seconds, leading St. Francis to a runner-up team score of 101 points in the girls' Division III race at the CIF State Cross Country Championships, held at Woodward Park Saturday.
This represents the best state championship performance by a Troubadour team since the 2012 squad also placed second at the meet. Gutierrez also captured the best individual finish by a St. Francis runner, surpassing Cate Joaquin's fourth-place showing in 2019; while her time is the fastest by a Troubie at the state championship, eclipsing Lauren LaRocco's 17:26 at the 2013 meet.
Furthermore, Gutierrez posted the fourth fastest time by a freshman in meet history, trailing only Simi Valley's Sarah Baxter (16:57 in 2010), Ventura's Sadie Engelhardt (16:59 in 2021) and Mission Prep's Jordan Hasay (17:11 in 2005), and putting her in front of Del Oro's Riley Chamberlain (17:19 in 2018).
El Toro won the D-III title with 88 points, compiling an aggregate time of 1:31.23. Santa Margarita had two runners in the top 10 and posted a combined time two seconds faster than St. Francis, but finished third (133 points) due to back end of its lineup. Cathedral Catholic (141), Oak Park (173), Northgate (179) and Campolindo (199) composed the fourth- through seventh-place schools among the 25-team field.
Both Gutierrez and the Troubies led at the one-mile mark, with eventual champion Gretchen Yakaitis of Carondelet taking over the lead on the back stretch of the course. El Toro's Lilly Schroeder moved up nine places from the one-mile to 2.1-mile splits, helping the Charges move ahead in the team standings.
Sophomore Halle Welch and junior Sunny Schranz finished back-to-back in 29th (18:27.8) and 30th (18:28.2), respectively. Sophomore Miya Menza followed in 41st at 18:37.7, with yet another 10th grader, Sophia Kadel, crossing in 46th (18:42.7). Senior Chloe Harrison finished 57th (18:50.6) with freshman Rebecca Dickson entering the chute in 74th (19:04.5) as the Troubie displacers.
Welch improved 22 places and more than 20 full seconds from her 2024 state finish (18:48.3). Kadel gained 10 places and about 19 seconds from her freshman performance (19:01.4). Even more dramatic improvements came from Schranz, who placed 67th (19:11.8) a year ago; and Menza (68th, 19:13.6). Welch and Schranz also now rank among the program's top 20 times at the state championship, with Gutierrez, Welch, Schranz, Dickson, Menza and Kadel also moving into the top 10 for their respective classes. Harrison came within less than a second from cracking the Troubies' top 10 times by seniors at the state meet. A full SF record book for the CIF state meet is available here.
The 2002 St. Francis team remains the only state champion in school history. The Troubies have also enjoyed podium finishes in 2012 (second) and 2014 (third).
2025 CIF STATE CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
Woodward Park (Fresno, Calif.)
Events with SF entrants only • Winner plus SF finishers listed
DIVISION III GIRLS' TEAM SCORES - 1. El Toro, 88; 2. St. Francis, 101; 3. Santa Margarita, 133; 4. Cathedral Catholic, 141; 5. Oak Park, 173; 6. Northgate, 179; 7. Campolindo, 199; 8. Yorba Linda, 271; 9. Palos Verdes, 281; 10. San Marcos, 307; 11. St. Ignatius, 322; 12. Mater Dei, 351; 13. Las Lomas, 352; 14. Beyer, 406; 15. Carondelet, 406; 16. Ponderosa, 411; 17. Sacred Heart Cathedral, 412; 18. La Costa Canyon, 445; 19. San Luis Obispo, 445; 19. San Luis Obispo, 475; 20. Chico, 483; 21. Our Lady of Peace, 538; 22. Mission Vista, 563; 23. Central East, 570; 24. Lowell, 689; 25. Sherman Oaks, 796.
DIVISION III GIRLS' INDIVIDUALS - 1. Gretchen Yakaitis, Carondelet, 17:09.9... 2. Alyssa Gutierrez, 17:17.6; 29. Halle Welch, 18:27.8; 30. Sunny Schranz, 18:28.2; 41. Miya Menza, 18:37.7; 46. Sophia Kadel, 18:42.7; 57. Chloe Harrison, 18:50.6; 74. Rebecca Dickson, 19:04.5.
