Saucony Flo50 Pre-Season Boys XC Team Rankings Countdown

This will be my 13^th year at Great Oak and I've been there since we opened in 2004.

What is your meet schedule this fall?

We will focus on the big 4 invites in California; Woodbridge, Stanford, Clovis, Mt. SAC.

How has summer training gone for your team? What do you focus on during the summer months?

Our boys team didn't take as many athletes to NBNO so many of them have worked hard and are in better shape than our girls are. It will be interesting to see if the summer conditioning some of our boys have done that haven't worked very hard in the summer over the past few years will pay off for the team.  We will focus on building the biggest base we can get in over the next 6-8 weeks.

Which athletes do you see as the probable top five this season?

Solomon Fountain is the lone returner from last year's NXN Championship team, and he will look to improve from a 12^th place finish at state as a junior.  He ran 4:10/1:53/9:19 last track season and will give us a really low stick in most meets.  Carlos Carvajal is the athlete that has made the biggest jump of anyone on the team in the last year. He will be a surprise for many people, but he is ready to run in the top 5 in most of the big invites this season and will be a really strong #2 on this team. Right behind him is Jacob Korgan who ran 9:28 last season as a soph. Carlos and Jacob train stride for stride and will be 2 of the best juniors in California this year.  After that it is wide open...Seniors Wesley Bowen, Justin Eipp, Anthony Ruiz, Declan Clause, Alvin Yu, and sophs Tyler Tickner and Ryan Shields all have a great shot at filling out the varsity roster.

Who are your team captains or leaders and what stands out about them as examples for the rest of their teammates?

Carlos Carvajal - 11

Jacob Korgan - 11

Solomon Fountain - 12

Alvin Yu - 12

Declan Clause - 12
Wesley Bowen - 12

Anthony Ruiz - 12

Our boys have been doing a great job embracing their role as leaders on the team and I would expect that we will see those results on the course. This group of guys has done a tremendous job bringing the younger guys into the fold and I think that will pay dividends for GO over the next couple of seasons.

Who are some new faces who will make an impact on your team this year? (i.e. freshmen, transfers, runners who have improved a lot)

We have 2 frosh boys that have already shown they are ready to compete at a high level. Gabe Abbes just ran 16:30 for 5k at the Baldwin Park 5k on 8/6/16 breaking Isaac Cortes' frosh record for our team (16:38), which puts him in pretty elite company. Chris Verdugo is another big time frosh that will be running a lot of varsity races this year for our team as our older athletes rest. He is ready to show he is one of the best frosh in the state this season!

What are some staple workouts your team does during the season?

This season our boys team will be focusing on basic race strength so tempo repeats will be something we will focus on a lot. 3x2 mile tempos is something these guys will do a lot of this year...

What will be the biggest reason why your team is successful this season?

This year's group was a varsity team in waiting last year sitting behind an amazing senior group of guys. I think that hunger to show how good they actually are will be the thing that pushes us up to the top again. I think a lot of people wrote us off with all the graduations, when the truth is our program isn't going to take a big step back in any given year the way it is designed.

What will be the biggest obstacle or challenge facing your team this season?

I think last year's team showed that we can run with anyone in the nation and these guys will need to step up in the big races like that group did to get the same level of respect. If they can handle the pressure, they will surprise at the end of this season.

How would you describe your team's culture?

The focus of our culture is winning. I think most coaches put that down the list, but that really is what we are built around. I ask the kids for 3 things every day; 1. Be at practice, 2. Have a positive attitude, 3. Do what you are asked to do.  The athletes that do those things help us build a culture of success.

What are your top three goals for the team this fall?

The boys goals are to win state, podium at nationals, and to win the 4 big meets in CA.

Who feels more pressure this year: the boys, who are defending national champions, or the girls, who took third behind fellow Californians Davis last year?

The boys team has to feel some pressure trying to live up to the standards the boys team from last year set, but so far they appear to be unaffected. My belief is the girls team has a lot more to prove right now than the boys do.