GALT, CA (MPG) - The Galt Cross Country Team participated in the Kim Duyst Invitational Twilight Meet held in Ceres on Saturday, Sept. 14.

Galt had a group of 26 runners competing in the 2K and 5K events at this highly competitive meet. A number of runners had never run these distances before, with several setting personal records. 

Kitto Gonzalez led the way, breaking the school record with a time of 16:14 in the 5K.

In the Girls Freshman/Sophomore 2K race, Sophomore Morgan Jones finished in 26th place with a time of 8:59. She was followed by Freshman Daniell Aragon at 9:38, Analissa Alfaro at 9:45, Maeve Cordonnier at 10:52 and Delcy Rodriguez at 12:03.

In the Boys Freshman/Sophomore 2K Race, Freshman Daniel Crownover finished at 7:40, followed by Freshman David Espinoza at 7:45, Aiden Bowles at 7:52, Julian Alvarado at 8:52, Mateo Mejia at 8:53 with a new personal record, and Noah Dean at 9:50.8.

The Girls Varsity 5K Race featured over 200 runners. 

Emilyann Sheldon finished with a time of 22:26, followed by Sophomore Kristine Meixner, who set a new personal record at 22:53. Alanna Juarez posted a time of 23:09, another personal best, while Nora Werden and Elia Rodriguez completed the race in 24:18 and 24:25, respectively. Mae Trull finished at 27:00, closely followed by Ella Ipson at 27:13 with a new personal record.

The Boys Varsity 5K Race consisted of 376 runners. Kitto Gonzalez led his team by finishing 21st with a new personal best and school record of 16:14. Alejandro Herrera achieved a PR of 18:06, Sophomore Garret Rose finished in 20:13 with a PR, Xavier Gomez ran his first 5k in 20:17, Elliott Kramer set a PR with 20:34, and Austin Nichols completed his first 5k race in 25:56.

Head coach Bruce Peterson made sure this unique event was on the schedule this season. 

“The kids enjoyed running at twilight and under the lights,” said Peterson. “This was one of the largest, fastest and most challenging meets I recall. With over 50 top high schools and many of our region's fastest runners, it was a valuable experience for our team and will benefit us as the year progresses.”

The team’s next competition is on Saturday at Frogtown in Angels Camp, followed by their first league meet the following Wednesday at Folsom Lake College.