Vikings Cross Country Competes at SoCal Preview, Martinez and Taylor Lead the Way

The cross-country teams competed at the SoCal Preview this past weekend, hosted by Chaffey College. The women's team finished 16th in the 5k, while the men's team secured 15th place in their 4-mile race.

On the women's side, Jennifer Martinez led the Vikings with an impressive 47th-place finish, clocking an average mile time of 7:19.9 and crossing the line with an overall time of 22:46.7. Close behind was April Molina, who averaged a 7:21.9 mile and finished in 22:53.0.

"The teams did well this week working as a team," said Director of Cross Country/Track & Field Marcus Carroll. "We executed with pack running which helped our young team understand how to pace better and improve their times." 

In the highly competitive men's 4-mile race, Franklyn Taylor paced the Vikings with a solid performance, averaging 5:41.4 per mile and finishing in 50th place with a time of 22:47.0. Jamari Gibson followed with a 5:56 average mile, completing the race in 23:43.7.

The Vikings will return to action on October 11 at the Manny Bautista XC Invite, held at NTC Park in San Diego. Races start at 10 a.m.