CLOVIS >> The surprise was waiting for the Saugus High girls cross country runners as they came off the podium.
Coach Rene Paragas arranged to have all of school’s CIF state trophies brought up for the CIF state finals.
There they were, in all their glory, nine CIF state trophies won in the last 10 years, the perfect accessory for the paparazzi rush of photos that were to follow.
It gives new meaning to everyone gets a trophy.
“This is amazing. It’s overwhelming,” said Saugus runner Ashley Heys, a co-captain. “When people look at you as you walk by, they are in awe. And we are too. It’s so great to have this dynasty and to be able to make our own history.”
Saugus, of course, saved its best for the CIF state meet, recording 122 points to turn back challenges from Bella Vista (134) and Serrano (143) to win the Division 2 crown.
Immediately after the race, the Saugus runners returned to the tent, huddled together and anxiously awaited word on the final results.
When Paragas broke the news, the team erupted into shouts of joy and tears, capping a year in which Saugus overcame uncertainty and rare vulnerability.
But when it counted the most, Saugus once again rose to the occasion.
“Oh, man, every year it’s like this,” Paragas said. “It’s never easy. We get the best efforts of people and teams who have been stalking and hunting for us for a while. We’re taking everyone else’s best shots. But at Saugus, you have to figure out a way to get it done.”
Valencia transfer Kaylee Thompson established herself as the Saugus front-runner once and for all, recording a seventh-place finish in a loaded field, recording a mark of 17 minutes, 52 seconds on the 5K course, even beating Citrus Valley’s Claire Graves (17:54).
Sensing her chance to be part of the legacy, Thompson finished with a flurry in the final mile.
“When it gets to that point, it comes down to who wants it, who has the heart? That’s how I race. That’s how we all race,” Thompson said. “It comes down to guts and heart.”
Maybe no one has more guts and heart on Saugus than Sydney Suarez, who once again pushed her limits and found herself wobbly at the finish line.
Suarez, who was Saugus’ No. 3 runner at that point, started stumbling and took a slow stagger toward the finish line. Though she finished as Saugus’ No. 7 runner in 87th place in 19:15, she showed the heart of a Saugus champion.
“When I was close to the end, I felt my body crumbling,” Suarez said. “But I knew I had to keep going for my team.
“I knew I was close. I just had to push past the mats. I had to push past the checkered flags.”
Suarez’s finish perhaps made it a lot closer than it should have been. But Saugus had plenty of heroes step up for Suarez and the Centurions.
Mariah Castillo continued her late surge after taking 20th place in 18:17.7, regaining her strength following a two-week break to treat a possible stress fracture where she found herself in a boot.
That boot is now in the corner of her bedroom.
“I’m excited — whoo,” Castillo said. “In that last mile, I was like, ‘Who wants it more?’ I wanted one of those state titles.”
Heys added a 22nd-place finish in 18:18.4, steady as usual.
Sophomore Mackenna Park — a soccer player turned runner who was competing in just her sixth varsity race — came up clutch with a 60th-place finish in 18:51.
Co-captain Emma Bahr, running in her first state final, added a 64th-place finish in 18:52.
“We wanted to go out more conservative, keep the pace and just relax,” Bahr said. “We know when to move up. We had to execute and be strong at the end.”
Freshman Jacquline Cascione made a splash in her first state final with a dynasty program in 86th place in 19:12, one place ahead of Suarez.
“This feels amazing,” Cascione said. “I never experienced anything like that. And when we were all cheering after we found out, it was amazing.”
Gunn’s Gillian Meeks won the Division 2 crown in 17:16, beating Granada’s Megan McCandless (17:21) and Tesoro’s Amanda Gehrich (17:30).
Yet Saugus was able to celebrate as a team, enjoy its moment atop the podium and pose with its championship hardware, which Heys joked felt heavier after the race.
“It feels amazing. You can see we’re all so happy and smiling,” Heys said.