Meet Coverage: Photos | Interviews | Articles
---
The 47th Annual Clovis XC Invitational delivered a historic weekend at Woodward Park in Fresno, CA. Crater (OR) broke the team time record, Derek Luna secured the first CA boys' win since 2023, and Addyson Johns made her mark on the all-time sophomore list.
Crater Breaks Woodward Park Girls Team Time Record
The Crater girls from Oregon made another seismic statement by winning the Clovis XC Invitational and breaking the girls' team course record. This marks another big win in California, following their Woodbridge Cross Country Classic win last month. However, Saturday morning's race was much different and much closer than Woodbridge, with a healthy Buchanan providing their toughest competition yet.
Similar to Woodbridge, Crater jumped to an early lead through the first mile, with four runners in the top ten. Adley Damon, Brynn Davenport, and Grace Vanwart held their top-ten positions through the 2.1-mile marker, but Buchanan closed the gap to within 10 points. Buchanan gave Crater a real scare at the finish when their top 5 runners finished ahead of Crater's 5th-place runner, but it wasn't enough.
The Crater Comets beat the Buchanan Bears 55-65 in the fastest girls' team race in Woodward Park's history. The Comets ran 1:27:25, breaking the 1:27:49 team time record set by Trabuco Hills at the 2024 CIF State XC Championships. Trabuco Hills finished 7th at Nike Cross Nationals that season. Buchanan also ran 1:28:21 to break their school team time record at Woodward Park and moved up to #3 on the all-time list.
Currently, Crater ranks #2 in the COROS MileSplit50 Team Rankings while Buchanan ranks #8, but these performances could change that.
Derek Luna Reclaims Clovis For California Boys
Out-of-state competition has dominated the past two years of the Rob Brenner Boys Championships, but Derek Luna of Rio Mesa stopped it this morning. Luna ran 14:30.0 to beat Elias Thronson of Davis and Garrett Faught of Crater (OR).
This year's championship went out conservatively until sophomore Ryder White of Crater (OR) took the lead at 1200m and began to string it out. After the first mile, nearly ten boys were in the mix for the win, but Luna, Faught, and Thronson separated from the pack in the last mile. On the rolling hills, Luna began to pull away from Oregonian Faught to ensure the California boys would be back on top at Clovis.
Luna's performance moves him up to #5 in meet history, behind Colin Sahlman's 2021 win, and #7 in Woodward Park course history. He's now definitely in the conversation for the Brooks XC West Championships in December, and this time he's moved up to U.S. #7 in the 5K rankings.
All-Time Clovis XC Invitational Boys List
1. Jackson Spencer (Herriman-UT, 2025) - 14:16.90
2. Leo Young (Newbury Park-CA, 2022) - 14:25.90
3. Nico Young (Newbury Park-CA, 2019) - 14:28.90
4. Colin Sahlman (Newbury Park-CA, 2021) - 14:29.40
5. Derek Luna (Rio Mesa-CA, 2026) - 14:30.00
Addyson Johns Climbs Historic Woodward Park List
The sophomore from Santiago controlled the Bill Buttener Girls' Championship from the start, setting a 5K personal record of 16:50.8 to claim the biggest victory of her high school career.
Addyson Johns entered the meet with momentum after finishing third as the top Californian at last month's Woodbridge Cross Country Classic. By the first mile, she led a talented field that gradually thinned as she pushed toward the finish. Only Isabella Ruiz (Ontario), the Crater Trio, and Alyssa Gutierrez (St. Francis) remained in striking distance.
Ruiz was the only girl who managed to challenge her, but it wasn't nearly enough, as Johns ran into the history books. Her 16:50.8 finish moved her up to #3 on the Woodward Park course sophomore list, behind Julia Stamps and Claudia Lane. Both runners went on to win national high school XC championships, making Johns' mid-sophomore-season win even more promising.
-- Addyson Johns leading the Clovs XC Invitational, photo by DeAnna Turner --
She also moved up to #4 in meet history behind Aleo Curtis' 16:44 win from last season. Ruiz finished second overall in 16:55.9, moving her up to #6 in meet history, ahead of Destiny Collins' 2014 victory. Although Johns and Ruiz have already delivered standout performances this season, their execution on this course earns them national recognition.
All-Time Clovis XC Invitational Girls List
1. Sadie Engelhardt (Ventura-CA, 2024) - 16:24.20
2. Rylee Blade (Santiago Corona-CA, 2024) - 16:31.30
3. Aelo Curtis (Ventura-CA, 2025) - 16:44.50
4. Addyson Johns (Santiago-CA,2026) - 16:50.80
5. Corie Smith (Buchanan-CA, 2019) - 16:53.90
6. Isabella Ruiz (Ontario-CA, 2026) - 16:55.90
7. Destiny Collins (Great Oak-CA, 2014) - 16:57.00
7. Alexandra Klos (Vista del Lago-CA, 2019) - 16:57.00
Other Notable Performances
Mountain View boys (#19 on the COROS MileSplit50 Rankings) dominate the Rob Brenner Boys Championship, with a 13-second gap among their top 5 runners.
Eli Hernandez of Granada runs 14:59.80, breaking the Woodward Park freshman record and becoming the first freshman to break 15 minutes on the historic California 5K course.
St. Francis (SJ) girls break the CIF Division III Woodward Park team time record to finish 3rd overall with a team time of 1:30:11.
Jack Paz of Ayala ran 14:59.10 to win the D1 Varsity Boys race by twenty-two seconds. The junior would have finished 10th overall in the Rob Brenner Boys Championship.
Meet Coverage: Photos | Interviews | Articles
---