Bottom Row: Sherlyn, Sophia, Giselle, Cassandra, Yara, Jaslyn, Coach Juan, Coach Pasinato, Elise, Isabella, Cristal, Abigail, Xihuqunetizin, Vanessa

Second Row: Luis, Azael, Chris G, Diego B, Javier, Rey, Diego Z, Andrew V, Isaiah, Isaac, Jacob, Owen, Cesar, Marvin, Alex, Matthew S

Third Row: Rosa, Kenia, Janelly, Sherly, Sarahi, Symantha, Rukia, Suleyma, Juliet, Jenesie, Natalie A, Amanda, Natalie S, Leslie, Jazlyn

Top Row: Erick, Tyler, Julian, Chris V, Andrew Y, Jose, Jeremy, Matthew D, Fabian, Benjamin, Esteban, Jayson, Joaquin, Braulio, Anthony

The Dons Cross Country team kicked off their season early in September at the ASICS Cool Breeze Evening Invitational. All three teams for Boys and Girls raced under the Pomona Fairplex lights on a flat looped course that had a mix of dirt, grass, and asphalt. The invitationals name lived up to expectations, with race weather in the mid 60's by nightfall.

Notable performances came from the Varsity Boys side. Top 40 showings from Alex (6th), Joaquin (26th), & Erik (40th) lead to a team 12th place finish out of 35. Alex and Joaquin both took home medals. Chris G had a solid showing in the JV race, medaled, and earned a 3rd place finish.

The second race for the Dons was the 42nd Annual Woodbridge XC Classic; one of the nation's most prominent Cross Country races with 23 different states being represented. El Rancho was one of 400+ schools which raced over the weekend. Racers were looking to nab new 5k PRs on the fast and flat course made up of grass, concrete, and synthetic turf. Novice races had roughly 450 racers, while Grade Level and Varsity saw roughly 250 racers per race. The top 100 finishers per race (excluding Novice) medaled. 

Races were broken into Novice, Grade level, & Varsity. Notable placings for girls were as follows: Jaslyn (31-Novice), Samantha (49-Novice), Isabella (58-Novice), Xihui (59-Novice), & Giselle (68-Novice). Notable placings for boys were as follows: Matthew (74-Frosh), Esteban (93-Soph), Chris G (6-Junior competing as "Senior"), Diego B (58-Junior competing as "Senior"), & Braulio (75-Junior competing as "Senior").

The Dons third race of the season was the Del Rio League preview held at La  Serna High School located in Whittier CA. Division were broken into Novice and Advanced for the Boys and Girls.

The Boys Advanced squad took home first place and the Girls Advanced squad secured second place. The Boys Novice squad took second place and the Girls Novice squad left with fourth.

The Dons XC Team returned to La Serna High School for the 5th/4th race of the season. Divisions for both Boys and Girls were broken into Frosh (9th & 10th), JV, and Varsity.

Boys Team Finishes are as follows: Frosh 4th w/ an average of 19:03, JV 2nd w/ an average of 18:51, and Varsity 3rd w/ an average of 16:25. Top finishes are as follows: Top Frosh - Matthew Dondiego 17th out of 73, Top JV - Diego Buenrostro 9th out of 33, & Top Varsity - Alex Figueroa 3rd out of 32.

Girls Team Finishes are as follows: Frosh 3rd w/ an average of 22:58, JV 3rd w/ an average of 25:25, and Varsity 5th w/ an average of 22:02. Top finishes are as follows: Top Frosh - Jaslynn Soto - 7th out of 33 (Medal Position), Top JV - Abigail Estrada Santos - 12th out of 28, & Top Varsity - Juliet Peyrani - 19th out of 33.

The final race of the season was held at La Serna High School for the 2023 Del Rio League Finals; A course all squads were well familiar with.

Boys Team finishes are as follows: Frosh - 3rd place w/ an average of 18:59, JV - 2nd place w/ an average of 18:45, & Varsity - 4th place w/ an average of 16:12. Top finishes were as follows: Frosh - Matthew Dondiego - 19th out of 67, JV - Braulio Zatarain - 8th out of 34 (One place shy of medaling), & Varsity - Alex Figueroa - 6th out of 33 (Medaling Position & CIF Qualifier).

Girls Team finishes are as follows: Frosh - 3rd place w/ an average of 22:50, JV - 3rd place w/ an average of 22:49, & Varsity 5th place w/ an average of 22:06. Top finishes were as follows: Frosh - Jaslyn Soto 8th out of 40 (One place shy of medaling), JV - Jenesie Rivera 16th out of 30, & Varsity - Sophia Morales 19th out of 31. 

El Rancho High School was represented at the Cross Country CIF Prelims by Alex Figueroa (12th grade). Alex placed 31st out of 111 athletes in his division a feat made even more challenging as he ran without a team. Alex's finishing time was at the mark of 16:22, bettering his time of 16:30 just two-weeks prior. It was a honor and privilege to coach him in his final high school season (Coach Pasinato). At the close of his senior year, Alex went on to run for Mt. San Antonio College collegiately.