Crafton Hills’ cross country team to go the ‘extra mile’ at regionals
Publish Date: Nov. 6, 2025
Crafton Hills College’s Cross Country Team is making huge strides one race at a time.
Just four years after the program’s inception, its men’s team and runner Elizabeth Garcia are heading to Southern California regionals in San Diego on Nov. 7.
The group of athletes qualified for a spot in regionals in late October, with the men’s team placing fourth in the competition and Garcia placing third.
“It’s exciting,” said team coach Martin Zamudio. “We are trying to get that Crafton name out there because we’re kind of underestimated both athletics wise and academic wise.”
Runners who make up Crafton’s team come from all different backgrounds. Some are former football players, some baseball. The men’s team is also composed of all first-year Crafton students.
On the women’s side, Garcia is a second-year Crafton student who has been running since the third grade. But joining Crafton’s team has unlocked a deeper passion for the sport, she said.
“I think it’s an amazing opportunity for me,” said the 19-year-old Redlands resident. “I don’t see [cross country] as ‘I have to do this’ but ‘I get to do this.’ Thinking of running this way allows me to take it in more because I’m choosing to do this and I might as well give it my all.”
The SoCal Regional XC Championships will take place at NTC Park, 2455 Cushing Road, San Diego. Races begin at 10 a.m. for the women’s 5k and 11 a.m. for the men’s 4-miler. Athletes with the top qualifying times will head to the state championships on Nov. 22.
While results for regionals will not be known until after competition concludes, Zamudio has high hopes for the team.
“The avenue I want them to take is [to] come through with the realization that hard work does pay off,” he said. “They didn’t anticipate going to regionals but just wanted to give the sport a try. I want them to learn from the experience and work toward a personal record."
Garcia added, “I think if you would have told me my senior year of high school I would have joined the cross country team at Crafton, I would have laughed at you. But I don’t think I would be the runner I am today without Crafton. I really put that on my coaches because they really put that confidence in me.”
To learn more about the team, go to www.craftonhills.edu/athletics and click on the “Cross Country” tab. You can also follow the team on Instagram at www.instagram.com/chccrosscountry.
