Valley Christian's Jennifer Bergman had just finished blowing away the Division III field Saturday in Salinas when she managed another burst of speed: The cross-country runner sprinted to the side of course to encourage teammates who were still competing.
Bergman had good reason.
After winning her third Central Coast Section title on a three-mile course at Toro Park the senior wanted to see Valley Christian also advance to the state meet in Fresno in two weeks. Her words seemed to help as the Warriors advanced by finishing third in the division.
"I've never been that nervous after a race," said Bergman, whose time of 18:15 minutes tied for the fastest of the day with Division 1 winner Justine Fedronic of Carlmont.
Bergman didn't look nervous on an unusually hot November day, bursting to an early lead and remaining ahead of Aptos' Marissa Ferrante by 20 meters at the 1.75 mile mark.
Not even the stretch of hills that give Toro Park its reputation as rugged course bothered the runner. While temperatures in the mid-80s took left some runners on their knees after the finish, Bergman remained cool.
"I love hills and train on them every week, that's where I really started to break way from the pack," she said.
Bergman wasn't the only three-time winner Saturday.
Leland's Stephanie Barnett won her third consecutive CCS crown by winning the Division II title in 18:36. Barnett was passed at the midway point by Mountain View teammates Mary Reynolds and Alex Westbrook, who led the pack heading into the last mile.
Then Barnett made her move. Reynolds (18:45) and Westbrook (18:56) finished second and third to help the Spartans cruise to the team title.
The Mountain View boys' team also won the Division II title with ease. A year after being edged at the tape by Palo Alto's Phil MacQuitty, Mountain View junior Garrett Rowe ran away with the individual title with a time of 15:29. Teammate Ian Myjer (15:37) was second with MacQuitty (15:48) third. Mountain View sophomore Parker Schuh (15:56) was fourth for the State's second-ranked Spartans.
"I took off on the crests of the hills and crushed them there," Rowe said. "It's my first CCS title, it feels good and painful at the same time."
Willow Glen's Noe Lema, a native of Ethiopia who began competitive running as a sophomore, had an impressive victory in the Division III race. Lema's all-out effort left him physically spent after beating Aptos' Mitch Moriarty.
Lema learned the sport with former standout teammates Marcos Corona and Mohamed Abdalla, a 2006 CCS champion who now competes at UCLA.
"I've had the best role models for running at Willow Glen,'' he said.