SUNNYVALE, Calif. — Just eight days after an impressive showing against some of the nation's top Division I competition at the Bill Dellinger Invitational, the nationally ranked Chico State women's cross country team faced another tough test Saturday at the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational.
The Wildcats were challenged throughout the 6,000-meter invitational before taking control in the closing stages. Behind three finishers among the top five and a determined effort throughout their scoring lineup, Chico State captured the team title with 46 points, finishing ahead of Stanislaus State (77), San Francisco (95), and host Santa Clara (122) in a field of 23 scoring teams. The Wildcats followed that performance with an even more dominant victory in the women's open race, scoring just 26 points to complete a sweep of both women's team titles.
For head coach Gary Towne, the quick turnaround presented an opportunity to see how his team would respond after such a demanding competition the previous week.
"I knew coming off of a pretty emotionally charged Dellinger race that it was going to be tough to come back and back that up this week," Towne said. "But I felt like that would be a good challenge."
The Wildcats were tested throughout the race, with nationally ranked No. 14 Stanislaus State holding an advantage in the team standings through the two-mile mark and remaining competitive well into the second half. While Chico State had several athletes near the front, the Warriors' tightly packed lineup forced the Wildcats to fight for every position. It wasn't until the later stages of the race that Chico State began to take control, as the Wildcats' front runners separated themselves from several of the Warriors' top athletes and their teammates continued advancing through the field.
"Stanislaus was winning the race probably two-thirds of the way through," Towne said. "It was a grind. You could tell that it was tough today for some of the women, but credit to them for seeing it through and taking care of business when things got really tough out there."
Leading the charge was senior Della Molina, who returned to competition after missing the previous week's Dellinger Invitational due to illness. The seven-time All-American showed little sign of rust, finishing second overall in 20:25.0 behind Santa Clara's Milaina Almonte, who won in 20:00.3. Molina crossed the finish line alongside her twin sister, Iresh, who competed unattached and recorded an identical time of 20:25.0. Just seconds behind, senior Megan Malloy and sophomore Paulina Martins delivered another pair of outstanding performances, finishing fourth and fifth overall in 20:28.7 and 20:29.5, respectively.
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| Olivia Beschorner at the finish |
The trio gave Chico State three of the first five finishers across the line, with just 4.5 seconds separating the Wildcats' top three. Malloy and Martins were particularly effective over the second half of the race, steadily moving up through the field and gaining valuable positions as the Wildcats took control of the team standings.
Behind the leading trio, sophomore Olivia Beschorner delivered a strong performance of her own, finishing 19th overall in 21:00.1 to secure Chico State's fourth scoring position.
Beschorner approached Saturday's race with a different mentality than her previous competitions. After opening aggressively at both Saint Mary's and Dellinger, she made a conscious effort to remain patient and allow the race to develop before moving through the field.
"I think we have a really strong team of patient racers, and I was trying to stay with that," Beschorner explained. "I didn't get out in the greatest position, but I definitely worked up past several packs."
The relatively flat and fast course at Baylands Park suited that approach, allowing Beschorner to focus on passing competitors rather than navigating the more technical terrain found at many cross country venues.
"I think what's really cool about this course is that it's basically a racetrack. It's pure racing," Beschorner said. "I think cross country can get a little technical, and some of the racing aspects get lost, but this course brings out a really competitive edge."
As the finish approached, Beschorner continued looking for opportunities to gain positions, particularly against conference opponents she expects to face again in the postseason.
"When you're in a scoring position, it puts the mentality in your mind that every point counts," Beschorner said. "The time is cool, but beating people is cooler"
Her performance represented another milestone in an impressive collegiate progression. The last time Beschorner competed on the Baylands Park course, she ran 23:43. Saturday, she covered the same 6,000-meter distance more than two minutes and 40 seconds faster.
While Beschorner acknowledged the significant improvements in her fitness, she believes the greatest change has come from her relationship with racing and the women around her.
"I've made some really big jumps, but mentally I'm a lot tougher, and I've really changed my relationship with racing," she explained. "When you get on the line with the women we have at Chico, there's nothing you can ask for more than to give everything for the women beside you."
That mentality has developed through years of shared training, competition, and challenges alongside teammates who have supported one another regardless of their individual performances.
"They've been with me, and I've been with them through everything," Beschorner said. "They still cheered for me when I was running 25 minutes and 24 minutes pretty consistently. It's a really special feeling to have grown into the people we are together and to have seen each other at our lowest and highest and been just as supportive all the way through."
Completing Chico State's scoring five was sophomore Kira Forsberg, who finished 24th overall in 21:08.3. Senior Sienna Bianchi followed just four-tenths of a second behind in 25th (21:08.7), providing valuable displacement points and further strengthening the Wildcats' team score.
Together, the Wildcats' five scorers averaged 20:42 over the 6,000-meter course, with just 43.3 seconds separating Molina and Forsberg.
Sophomore Isabel Rosales added a 37th-place finish in 21:28.2, while Lucy Varela (44th, 21:36.1), Maya Schiro (56th, 21:46.1), and Veronica Bell (74th, 22:00.2) continued building on their performances from the previous week's San Francisco State Invitational.
For Towne, the victory was less about producing another fast team average and more about responding to a difficult challenge while preparing for the demands of championship racing.
With the CCAA Championships approaching, Saturday's comeback offered valuable experience in handling the physical and emotional demands of competing at a high level in consecutive weeks.
While the invitational squad demonstrated its ability to respond under pressure, the women's open race showcased another strength of the Chico State program: its remarkable depth and the continued development of its younger athletes.
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| Mattie Whipple mid-race |
Led by sophomore Mattie Whipple, the Wildcats dominated the 6,000-meter open competition with just 26 points, finishing 38 points ahead of runner-up Clovis Community College (64). Cal Poly Humboldt placed third with 121 points.
Whipple, a transfer from Fresno Pacific, produced the strongest performance of her season, finishing second overall in 22:17.7 and earning the top-scoring position in the team standings.
After settling into the lead pack during the opening stages, Whipple made the decision to move to the front rather than remain surrounded by other runners. It was an aggressive move for an athlete who admitted she initially worried about sustaining the pace.
"I was a little scared to go because I thought I was going to die out," Whipple said. "But then I just trusted myself and went with it, and followed the bike."
The decision carried additional significance for Whipple, who is legally blind due to a degenerative eye condition that affects her central vision. With difficulty recognizing objects and changes in terrain, navigating a crowded cross country course presents challenges that many of her competitors never have to consider.
Moving to the front also made it easier for Whipple to navigate the course. Rather than worrying about the runners immediately around her, she could focus on identifying shadows and changes in the terrain ahead.
"I was trying not to step on people's shoes," Whipple explained.
It was the first time in quite a while that Whipple had attempted to lead a race in that fashion, but she was pleased with the decision and the confidence it gave her.
Towne was equally encouraged by what he saw from the sophomore, particularly after a challenging opening portion of the season.
"It was great to see Mattie running with confidence and really getting after it," Towne said. "I was just trying to encourage her to focus on the bike and chase the bike."
Whipple credited much of her growing confidence to the environment she has found since transferring to Chico State, where she has embraced the positivity and support of her teammates.
Among her biggest role models are the Molina twins, whose attitudes toward training and competition have helped shape her own approach to the sport.
"The team is so supportive, and there are so many great role models, like the twins," Whipple said. "I strive to be like them because they're always so happy, no matter what. I've been trying to implement that, and I think it's been helping me with my running, just always finding the positive."
Behind Whipple, freshman April Anguiano continued her strong progression with a fourth-place overall finish in 22:23.6, giving Chico State two of the first four runners across the line.
Junior Grace Reed finished eighth in 22:37.2, followed closely by freshman Abigail Lamb in ninth (22:41.1) and Jimena Rivera in 13th (22:47.3), completing a scoring five that placed all five Wildcats among the top 13 finishers.
The depth extended even further, as freshman Alice McCarty took 14th in 22:54.4, sophomore Katelyn Espino finished 15th in 23:00.3, and senior Madison Decker followed in 17th (23:01.7). Together, the Wildcats placed eight runners among the top 17 finishers.
Towne was particularly pleased with how confidently the women competed near the front, with several runners working together in a large chase pack before gradually separating as the race progressed.
"We had a pretty good chunk of our women running in that chase pack for quite a while," Towne said.
Although the warmer conditions of the later open race made fast times more difficult, Towne emphasized the value of learning to compete for positions and contribute to a team score regardless of the clock.
The performance also reminded him of the developmental pathway that has helped produce so many of Chico State's nationally competitive runners over the years.
While reviewing previous Bronco Invitational results, Towne noticed several former Wildcats who had competed in the open sections before eventually developing into NCAA Championship competitors just a year or two later.
"It reminds me of how this all works," Towne said. "It's easy to focus on the present results, but there's a process to be had. Even the experience in these open races, building confidence and learning how to race at the college level, is really important."
With victories in both women's races, Chico State completed a program-wide sweep, as the Wildcat men also captured the invitational and open team titles.
Having watched the men's invitational squad race just before them, Beschorner said their performance provided additional motivation for the women to follow suit, reflecting the close relationship and mutual support between Chico State's two programs.
"We can appreciate our own success, but we can't forget how much the men's team motivates us as well," Beschorner said. "They've hit a point where they all race really gutsy, and it's like, we want to follow that up. They want to win. We want to win."
The Wildcats now turn their attention to the postseason, beginning November 7 at the CCAA Championships, hosted by Cal State San Bernardino. Chico State will enter the meet seeking its fourth consecutive women's conference title, with Saturday's victories providing another reminder of both the team's present strength and the promising future developing throughout its roster.
