Division 1
On paper, it looks like a landslide as they only graduated one athlete (Fatima Cortes) from last year's postseason squad. Tori Gaitan is back, healthy and ready to roll to defend her Division I State and Divisional Championships. After a wise and cautious approach in shutting her down in this past track season, Gaitan was ready and wanting to compete at the end of the season. Coach Doug Soles may have given up a team track & field title this past spring in his decision, but she is back! Audrey Dang is coming off a great track season where she was able to match the efforts of Arianna Griffiths. Glancing back at the 2018 finals, Great Oak returns four of the top 12 with Aubrey Nex ready to roll to provide that much needed depth.
Can Vista Murrieta replicate their incredible finish in 2018?
No other coach knows how to exercise patience with precision in preparing athletes for the end of the season than Coley Candaele, as evidenced in last year's State Meet and performance at NXN. Patiently allowing his own daughter, Devyn to rest out the spring track season, the sophomore placed fifth at the divisional finals on VERY limited training! Graduating two of their top six will hurt, but juniors Emily Borque and Aniya Pretlow are coming off impressive track seasons. Makayla Fick is as talented as anybody in perhaps, the strongest league in the nation!
Can Saugus sneak in and topple both of the giants mentioned above? 
One of the top coaches, Rene Paragas, in California State history brings his Saugus' squad back to Division 1 for the first time since 2007! This will be one of their best squads yet, and that is being compared to a program that has made the State Meet every year since 2005! They return their crew from last year that fourth in an incredibly tough Division 2 battle. Julia Pearson (pictured, bib 1270), Hailey Rutter, and Hannah Fredericks are coming off strong track seasons and look to lead a deep crew upfront. They may not have the top frontrunners, but watch out for the team time gap from the Centurions.
Other squads chasing those State Meet berths:
Beyond the three powerhouses above, Aliso Niguel, Ayala, Fountain Valley, Mira Costa, West Ranch, Santiago are the favorites to compete for those last four slots. Renee Williams-Smith may be one of the more underrated coaches in the section as she has guided her Mira Costa girls to the State Meet the past four years and in ten of the past twelve seasons! Aliso Niguel and Santiago are seeking their first ever State Meet berths.
Top returners to watch:
Coming off her state title in the 1600 meters, Chino Hills' Jacqueline Duarte is seeking her third trip to the California State Meet. Those trips ended in disappointment for the junior where she missed the podium on both occasions.
The transformation of San Clemente's Hana Catsimanes from a 'miler' to a complete distance runner is complete. She rolled to a 10:28 this past Spring, qualified for the State Meet and will challenge for the division title this season. With her training overseen by no other than Tim Butler (yes, THAT Tim Butler) it should not have come as any surprise that she was a Foot Locker finalist in 2018!
Mira Costa sophomore Dalia Frias was part of last year's great freshman crop. She came right back in the Spring to qualify for the California State Meet with her 4:51 effort in the 1600 meters. She will improve her 12th place at the 2018 finals.
Upland's Riley Rodriguez shocked us with her sixth-place finish at the divisional finals. That race, we witnessed a 65-second improvement from she recorded on the same course a month earlier while she came into postseason off a third-place finish at her own league finals. She a solid track season as she returns as fourth fastest returners from those finals.
Division 2
Can Claremont defend their title and claim a fourth straight?
Coach Bill Reeves is back and the Claremont ship has been redirected back on the course where we saw their girls ascend to one of the best in the nation. Don't be fooled by the lack of the track season from sophomore Maddie Coles (pictured), as she ran away from a VERY talented field to the XC D-2 title a year ago. Azalea Segura-Mora and Angie Gushue bring NXN experience to the table once again, where the squad finished in 12th place. They have their work cut out for them but expect, perhaps, the tightest team battle of any division in November.
Just how good is this young Canyon squad?
As we know, one star freshman can impact the success of a squad. But Anaheim Canyon added two in 2018, while, both displayed their talent, much to the dismay of the rest of the division, more so this past Track season. Sophomores Emma Hadley and Isabella Frisone shined on the oval this past Spring as both qualified to the State Meet in the 1600 and 3200, respectively. Frisone was one of the most improved girls in the section from the end of Cross Country and into the track season. Sarah Paino also showed impressive improvement this past Spring to elevate this crew as the ones to beat for the Division 2 crown this season.
Do the top two favorites need to watch out for El Toro, Serrano...and, now Newbury Park?
We may just see this division being more impressive and deeper in top talent once again. With Saugus moving into Division I, there was a quick sigh of relief, but El Toro, Serrano and now, Newbury Park have their eyes focused forward. El Toro (led by Alexis Neuville) and Serrano possess all of the tools to be amongst the best in the Southern Section. Serrano's Tiani Goeson and Maribel Aguilar were fifth and sixth respectively at last year's divisional finals. Newbury Park has added Hailey Golman (formerly of Westlake and Simi Valley), to compliment Mohandas Archana and Fiona Hawkins as the girls will chase their boys' nationally-ranked shadow in their quest for the State Meet!
Other squads seeking State Meet berths:
Capistrano Valley, Ventura, and Westlake, Capistrano Valley should be a lock as we may have not given them their full due on including them above. They also have the motivation of placing eighth as a team at the 2018 divisional finals. Dana Hills makes the move to Division 2 for the first time ever. Despite a key transfer moving away, Westlake and Rebecca Schultz will be in the mix in working to break into the top four and return back to the State Meet once again. Ventura is a sleeper and is ready for them to steal a spot in November as one of these three is projected to be that eighth-place squad, unfortunately.
Top Returners to Watch:
Ventura's Madelaine Locher is coming off a tremendous Track season, which saw her capture the Division 2 
title in the 3200 but finished tenth at the State Meet after peaking with a 10:30 at the SS Masters Meet. She placed third at the divisional finals in 2018 and fourth at the California State Meet.
Capistrano Valley's Carly Corsinita has developed into one of the top distance runners in California. In breaking 10:30 for the 3200 meters, she qualified for the State Meet this past Spring. The senior placed seventh at the State Meet last Fall.
JW North junior Makayla Browne is known more for her accomplishments in the 800 meters but does not forget that she was the Division 2 runner-up last year, running 17:05 on the Riverside Championship course. Very few own a resume that impressively reads 2:11.30/5:06.86/11:04.82 on the track as she qualified for the State Meet final for the 800 meters once again this Spring.
Simi Valley junior Jill Walker seeks a third straight trip to the California State Meet as she has finished tenth both seasons at the divisional finals. Now putting a frustrating track season behind her, she is motivated to improve upon those finishes and get back on the podium as she did as a freshman.
Colony junior Amber Rios is seeking her third trip to the California State Meet, as she placed sixth last year. She just missed the podium in 2017 in placing eleventh at the State Meet as a freshman.
Division 3
Can anyone challenge Palos Verdes for the team title?
With 11 of the top 16 from the 2018
Division 3 finals all graduated, several top squads, will face the challenge of replacing
those top runners. Meanwhile, Palos
Verdes has only one to replace as they are the favorites defend their Division
3 title. If so, this would be their
seventh divisional title in the past ten seasons. Seniors Savannah Scriven and
Samantha Steman are the third and fourth fastest returners from a year ago and
have the additional motivation of just missing the Division 3 state title last
November. The pair crossed the line
together at the State Meet to give their squad the early lead. Traditionally, Palos Verdes has always been
able to provide the needed depth for success and 2019 should be par for the
course.
With graduations hitting several top squads from a year ago, Brea Olinda is the greatest threat to the Sea Kings. They finished one spot out from qualifying to the State Meet in 2018. Whitney Valenti and Mia Douge enter into their senior years with that extra motivation in what should be their highest finish since the 2006 squad placed second at the Division 2 finals. Valenti pushed aside injuries from last Cross Country season and rolled to a 4:55 this past Spring on the oval.
Who will grab those
other five spots to the State Meet?
On paper, Agoura, Bonita, Moorpark, North Torrance, Oak Park, and Yorba Linda
are the likely candidates to compete for those State Meet berths. Yorba Linda is led by Siena Palicke (4:54.20
this past track season), who finished third at the 2018 Divisional finals and
led her squad to the State Meet for the first time in school history. With most of their squad back, they will be
in a position to challenge for a top-three finish. Georgia McCorkle will lead Agoura as they
return their top six from the 2018 finals.
With West Torrance (fourth place a year ago) moving over to Division 2,
that opens the door for another squad.
While Moorpark is looking to overcome graduation losses, they also bring
back the experience of placing third at the 2018 finals. Oak Park graduated their super-duo in Sarah
Shulze and Sylvia Cruz-Albrecht but may just have enough underclass power to
compete for a State Meet berth. Bonita returns
the firepower to qualify to the State Meet for the first time since 2015.
Top Returners to
Watch:
Annabelle Boudreau of Corona del Mar enters her junior year coming off a runner-up
performance from the 2018 divisional finals and has finished in the top 20 at
the California State Meet the past two seasons.
Santa Margarita's Kendall Saeger looks to lead her squad back to the State Meet as she is coming off a solid track season (2:16.8/5:00.1). She peaked well a year ago in finishing 21st at the California State Meet.
Sophomore Mia Chavez of Chino crossed in a distant 32nd place at last year's finals but her talent shined on the oval this past track season. In breaking 2:16 and 5:10, she qualified for the divisional finals in both the 800 and 1600 meters. Can that talent translate to Cross Country - we'll soon see.Division 4
Is Harvard Westlake primed to leapfrog Foothill Tech for the title?
With one of the best pairs in the entire Southern Section, Daniela, and Natalia Quintero are poised to lead their squad to the Division 4 championship. Depth is the main concern for the Wolverines
as junior India Spencer was their top girl after the pair upfront (but almost two
minutes back). As a freshman, Daniela
Quintero emerged to capture individual title.
Both are coming off great Spring campaigns and looking to lead the squad
to their first title since 2009.
Foothill Tech has the daunting task of replacing their top two from last year's divisional championship squad and four from their top seven. Head coach Ken Reeves is always up for a challenge and has always relished the underdog role. Hannah Dearman-So and Brooke Secreto will be expected to handle the chores up front and pull off the upset for their third straight title. On paper, the Dragons are slated to fight for a top-three spot but we will never bet against them once November rolls around.
What other squads are most likely to make the State Meet?
Jessie Rose will lead her Laguna Beach crew to their third straight trip to
Fresno. Orange Lutheran, led by Sophia
Gutierrez returns their entire squad. Immaculate
Heart and La Canada will also be in the mix for the top-five finish. Beyond those four, it is wide open for that
last spot. Not much separates Bishop Amat,
Burroughs, Covina, El Segundo, Mayfield, and South Pasadena.
Other Top
Returners:
Mayfield junior Audrey Suarez has ascended into one of the best in the nation. Set back with injuries in 2018, she placed
second once again at the divisional finals.
But, she emerged to capture the Division 4 title at the State Meet before
advancing onward to Footlocker Nationals.
This past track season, she placed third in the 1600 meters (4:45.00) at
the California State Meet to cement herself as one of the top returners in the
nation on the oval.
Costa Mesa's Diane Molina has finished fifth at the past two Division 4 finals. Last year, she placed fifth at the California State Meet. The mega-mileage senior is also coming back from a strong track season that saw her eclipse the 11-minute barrier in the 3200 meters on several occasions.
La Canada's Ellaney Matarese is coming a great track season that saw her break the five-minute barrier for the 1600 meters to go along a 2:15 for the 800 meters. She was 13th at the divisional finals and we project her to compete for a top-five finish this upcoming November.Division 5
Before diving into the team picture, Village Christian's Mia Barnett seeks her third straight individual title. The junior is carving out a resume that is going to rank among the best in Southern Section history! She has reached the podium twice for the 1600 meters (4:46.12 best) during the spring season as she was the California State runner-up a year ago in Division 5. Xavier Prep returns their entire squad and will be the greatest threat to supplant St. Margaret's from the top spot. Junior Molly May was seventh at last year's finals while sister, Savana will be right beside her to lead them back to the State Meet for the third straight year. They last captured the Division 5 title in 2011.
Mammoth leads the way in what should be a tight battle for those spots! A program on the rise, Mammoth placed sixth at the 2018 finals. Thacher, Chadwick, Pasadena Poly, La Reina, Sacred Heart of Jesus and Linfield Christian will all be in the chase for State Meet berths!
Sierra Canyon's Isis Diaz (pictured) stepped it up to another level this past track with her 4:54 effort for the 1600 meters and qualifying for the Southern Section Masters Meet. She was runner-up to Barnett a year ago and placed eighth at the California State Meet!