After a successful league championship, the Paly girls’ cross country team is heading to Central Coast Section championships this Saturday. If the Lady Vikings finish in the top three they will qualify for state championships for the second year in a row.

"We are in the top five in our section, and in the mix [for championships]." coach Jones said.

The cross country team placed third at SCVALs with co-captains Renata Cummins and Alicia Ivanhoe finishing first and second, at 18:11 and 18:15, respectively.

The team will face stiff competition at CCS from Los Gatos, Mountain View, and perennial rival Gunn. The three-mile Salinas course includes a steep, hilly section.

The team’s preparations include running 400- and 800-meter intervals on the track, as well as conditioning runs.

"Our team is a lot stronger, and working a lot more together," senior co-captain Alicia Ivanhoe said. "Hopefully everything will go right, and we’ll make it to state championships."

"Other teams may be really strong, but we have the training and depth to make it to States," senior co-captain Lily Feng said. The team’s attitude is confident but cautious, and the girls all support each other, according to freshman Abby LaPier.

"We bond a lot," sophomore varsity runner Melanie Maemura, said.

According to co-captain Renata Cummins, to qualify for the championships, the third, fourth and fifth string runners must place highly. Last year, with four seniors on varsity, the team qualified for States, where they finished 16th overall. This year the team will be ready for a repeat performance, according to Cummins. She also said this is a "repairing year" for the team, after the loss of several seniors last year.

If the team qualifies, the state tournament will be on Nov. 25 at Woodward Park in Fresno.