Titans look to capture first conference women’s individual and team crowns, with men’s team also seeking first title as both groups prepare to clash with defending champion Cal Poly

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

When Samantha Huerta capped a memorable spring season at Cal State Fullerton by not only setting outdoor program records in the 800 meters, 1,500 meters and mile, but helping the Titans capture their first Big West women’s track and field team championship in school history, she knew the foundation had been established for an even bigger success story and potential greater achievements this fall.

“This can happen anywhere, but I’m so happy to do it with Fullerton. I’ve been there to witness Fullerton during one of the biggest shifts in its history. I’m actually one of the people making that history,” said Huerta, who placed 14th in the 800 at the NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Championships in June in Austin, Texas.

“I could’ve gone to any school, but being with this school, it was definitely so much more, winning the first ever Big West Championship, it was so much more rewarding than being part of a legacy. We’re making history and that’s so much more rewarding.”

An even more significant reward – one that Cal State Fullerton has been pursuing since the women joined the conference in 1985 – is at stake Saturday for Huerta and her teammates at the Big West Championships at the Ag-Ops Course in Riverside, Calif.

Not only are the Titans trying to knock off reigning champion Cal Poly San Luis Obispo – winner of five of the past seven Big West team titles – but Cal State Fullerton is seeking the first women’s cross country crown, both team and individual, in program history.

“I’ve met a lot of amazing women here at Fullerton and I think that it’s important that each one through the years has helped build the program to what it is,” said Huerta, who took second last season to match a runner-up finish by Heather Killeen in 1992 as the best conference performance in program history.

“We’ve learned what works and what doesn’t, and now we have this team that has learned how to work together and push each other at the same time. This team is so dedicated and determined, giving everything they have, every single race and that mentality is what we need in order to win the Big West championship.”

Huerta, a senior, and junior Trinity Ruelas – sixth at last year’s conference final at Carbon Canyon Regional Park in Brea, Calif. – both have the potential to challenge Cal Poly senior Miranda Daschian, the defending champion, for the individual title.

But helping the Titans take the final step to the top of the podium after finishing fifth in 2015, fourth in 2016, third in 2017 and second last season, remains the ultimate goal for both Huerta and Ruelas.

“It would be a huge honor if either one of us became the first individual cross country conference champion for Cal State Fullerton. We both look up to each other and constantly push each other to be better. I know I would be so happy for her if she achieved that goal, and vice versa,” Ruelas said.

“However, the ultimate goal is winning the team title and both doing our parts for the team. I’m more excited than nervous racing against everyone in conference this year, especially the defending champion Miranda. We’ve shown we can compete with great teams regardless of the type of race that unfolds. We’ve put in the work and envisioned what we want to achieve this Saturday for months.”

Daschian prevailed against Huerta at last year’s final by a three-second margin after placing second at the 2017 championship behind UC Santa Barbara standout Jenna Hinkle. Daschian’s victory gave Cal Poly four of the past seven individual crowns to go along with their seventh overall team title.

But the Mustangs will have to find a way to rebound after a 36th-place effort Oct. 18 at the Wisconsin Nuttycombe Invitational, with Daschian their top finisher in 84th place.

“It’s exciting that we have the opportunity to come back and rise to the challenge at conference. This season has made us all more resilient and that will be apparent on Saturday,” Daschian said. “I’m glad that I have such strong opponents for my last conference race, it keeps things exciting. I’ve always been so thankful for the opportunities I’ve had throughout my running career and couldn’t be finishing it with a better group of women.”

Cal State Fullerton has had a year’s worth of motivation to provide the necessary incentive for its rematch with Cal Poly after enduring a 33-39 setback at last year’s championship meet. That inspiration already helped fuel the Titans to capture their first Big West women’s track and field crown in May by a 129.5 to 123 margin over UC Santa Barbara.

“Of course we were initially disappointed about the outcome of conference last year, but we also understood that we left it all out there and put up some great individual performances. Building off what we did well in cross country helped propel us to new heights in track,” Ruelas said. “It was a bit of redemption for us to win the first women’s track conference title in program history. We’ve only become tougher and faster since then. The depth and level of talent in our team this year has been especially motivating. We constantly strive to push each other to be the best runners and people that we can be.

“We’ve made program history in track and we're confident we can do it again in cross country, as long as we continue to run for each other.”

Although Cal State Fullerton has the benefit of two veteran frontrunners in Huerta and Ruelas, the Titans’ depth has been instrumental in winning at the Mark Covert Classic, Notre Dame Joe Piane Invitational and UC Riverside Highlander Invitational. Cal State Fullerton placed second behind Arizona State at the University of San Diego Invitational, but Huerta didn’t compete at the Sept. 13 meet.

Demi Marine, Sarah Hollis, Sandra Flores and Alyssa Block all finished within seven seconds of one another Oct. 19 at UC Riverside. McKaylie Caesar, Kelsey Carroll and Wendi Leos have also been members of the Titans’ top seven at some point this season.

“This year we have really focused on running together in packs. During races and hard workouts, we always keep each other within arms distance. If one girl that’s usually in a certain spot is having an off day, there’s always someone else that notices this and can make up her spot,” Ruelas said. “I believe that continuing this will be necessary in order to do well at conference, regionals, and maybe, nationals.”

Although the Cal State Fullerton men’s team is also seeking its first Big West cross country title Saturday against defending champion Cal Poly, the Titans have a 1971 NCAA Division 2 championship trophy to remind them of past glory. In addition, Cal State Fullerton captured men’s conference track and field titles in 2017 and 2018.

But after the big breakthrough by the female track and field athletes in the spring, Cal State Fullerton knows it is ready to take the next step Saturday by going the distance in Riverside.

“When the women finally won their first ever track championship it really gave us more confidence in ourselves,” said Huerta, who has thrived this entire year thanks to more focus on a healthier diet and proper recovery, in addition to a later start to the cross country season in October.

“I am beyond thankful to have had an amazing individual experiences in this program and I want to be able to share that feeling with my team. After we won the track championship and seeing how much the team bonded after that was really special for the track program. This cross country team definitely deserves to see a championship because I’ve never been on a team who wants it as bad as us.”