Hartnell cross country

 For all the barriers the Panthers men's program broke this season, one they did not clear will linger into next season.
 The Panthers bid for a state team title did not pan out Saturday as they finished fifth for the second year in a row at Woodward Park in Fresno.
 "To put them on this stage is really challenging,'' Hartnell coach Chris Zepeda said. "A lot of these kids had never been in this position, even in high school.''
 Hartnell, who knocked off defending state champion American River two weeks ago at the Northern California finals, had its eyes set on Mt. San Antonio.
 Accept that wasn't who presented the biggest challenge as Riverside won the men's team title with 88 points, outdistancing runner-up Glendale by 24 points.
 "Maybe we were too concerned about Mt. Sac,'' Zepeda said. "Maybe they were worried about us. In the end, the teams in front of us won this meet with their No. 4 and No. 5 runners, their depth.''
 Mt. San Antonio finished third overall.
 "We're just short on championship experience,'' Zepeda said. "We're right there. We're knocking on the door. We just  have to put it all together.''
 The Panthers did walk off with two All-Americans after King City grad Edgar Bonilla and Alvarez alum Jorge Sanchez both placed in the top 10.
 Bonilla, an All-American last year after finishing ninth, placed fifth this year, clocking 20:32 over the four mile loop. Sean McDermott of Cuesta won the race in 20:06.
 Sanchez, who was 32nd last year, stood on the All-American podium with Bonilla after finishing in ninth in 20:34.
 "He was in sixth until the last quarter mile,'' Zepeda said. "Some of those track guys just had a little more speed. Jorge ran well.''
 Following the pair for Hartnell were Mario Perez (21st); Andrew Martinez (50th); Williams Ordaz (64th); Oscar Mora (93rd) and Angel Mejia (113th).
 "We've been a top five team in the state two years in a row,'' Zepeda said. "When we show up at the meets, people talk about us. Teams know this small college isn't going anywhere."
 The Panthers women's team finished 12th overall behind Yvette Felix's 32nd place finish. Felix was the only returning runner from last year's second place state finishing team.
 "I think we surprised some teams being so young this year,'' Zepeda said. "We proved we're capable of competing. We have five freshmen that can make that big jump next year and get us back to that level. They control their destiny."
 Following Felix for the Panthers were Beatriz Duarte, Jocelyn Cervantes, Alyssa Sanchez, Yvette Campos and Leslie Oseguera.
 MPC's Jeanette Cruz and Mady Houseman both set personal bests in their state meet debuts.