Alamosa boys cross country in prime position in 3A

Alamosa's cross country team. (Eric R. Flores)

Alamosa High School, nestled in the San Luis Valley in south-central Colorado, is in a prime distance running location.

Alamosa is home to the most successful Division II running program in the country, Adams State, and is fertile training ground at 7,500 feet. The area also has several strong running programs at the high school level. The Mean Moose are one of them.

Alamosa is led by legendary coach Larry Zaragoza, an Adams State alum who ran and learned under one of the best distance running coaches in American history, Joe Vigil.

Zaragoza, entering his 38th season at the school, also coached at Centauri in the 1970s. He is the only cross country coach in Colorado history to claim both boys and girls team state titles at two different schools. Zaragoza has won several championships over the years, but says his program’s focus isn’t solely on the end results each season.

“We don’t chase trophies,” Zaragoza said. “That’s one thing that’s convinced in my mind. I’m not going to try and inform a team to just try and go out and chase a trophy. I don’t want disappointment; I want enjoyment, no matter what happens at the end of the season.

"I want them to appreciate it and reflect on all the hard work that’s brought them to this point, no matter where it brings us. Be proud of your efforts and be proud of your achievements.”

Zaragoza’s boys team had another season to be proud of in 2013 with a third place finish at the 3A cross country state championships despite not having a single senior in the state lineup. The Alamosa boys have placed in the top four each of the past four seasons at the state championships and look to be one of the state title favorites in 2014, but Zaragoza never takes anything for granted.

“We’re in a tough region,” the long-time Alamosa coach said of 3A Region 2, arguably the most challenging boys region in the classification. “Vanguard School just moved up and Lamar’s back with a solid team.

"One of our goals is to increase the mileage in a smart way and keep people healthy, because we do have a fine group of young men and they’re going to be competing in some really good meets throughout the season. We do have quality, but we don’t have a lot of depth. We have six pretty outstanding runners and after that, it kind of drops off, not drastically, but compared to what our front-runners have, it would drop off a little bit.”

Alamosa, like most small schools, may struggle for depth, but their top-flight talent is excellent.

Alamosa's Isaiah DeLaCerda. (Eric R. Flores)

Isaiah De La Cerda is one of the best talents in Colorado for his age. He placed seventh at state cross country as a freshman last season and ran a 10:03 3,200-meters at the 3A state track championships, good for ninth place.

De La Cerda is talented enough to challenge for an individual state title this fall. The sophomore is the son of Peter, a second place finisher at the 2000 Olympic trials in the marathon, and Ronda De La Cerda. Both of Isaiah’s parents were standouts at Adams State. Peter has been an assistant coach at Alamosa for several years.

“It’s a blessing to have Peter on the program,” Zaragoza said. “He occasionally runs with the team. He takes the A group and he’ll run with them on their long runs. He likes to get out and do the hill workouts with them. I think that’s a plus having a coach like Peter, especially for his son Isaiah, because Isaiah is quite a talented young man.

"He seems to be mature beyond his years," Zaragoza added. "He seems so composed at meets. Again, he’s one of those who has no fear. He’s not afraid of anybody. He respects, along with our team and coaching staff — we respect our opponents, but we fear no one. We want to compete and we want to compete against the best.

"Isaiah’s always visiting with top runners. Last year, he would go speak with Bailey Roth out of Coronado High School and the young man that ran for Denver East (Cerake Geberkidane). Isaiah likes to be a student of the game.”

Jericho Ulibarri, a senior, could be nipping at De La Cerda’s heels again this fall. Ulibarri finished one second behind De La Cerda at last year’s state cross country meet in a strong eighth place effort.

Miguel Baltazar was the second-fastest freshman in the classification last year, placing 22nd at the state meet, and Chance Canty, Caleb Palmer, and Austin Chavez are fine runners in their own right.

Alamosa certainly has a talented team returning. The Mean Moose are still youthful, but certainly have a fine example of running success in their own backyard.

“Our kids do get to rub elbows every now and then,” Zaragoza said of sharing the town with Adams State. “For example, there’s a meet that they host here called the Joe I. Vigil. It’s a middle school race, a high school race, and then a collegiate race. Our kids know who the Adams State athletes are, whether they are male or female. I have had over the past years, the head coach Damon Martin come and speak to our team and share some knowledge and some motivational thoughts.

“They’re aware of Adams State’s success and I think them being from Alamosa, they want to be equally representative of the running community.”

Alamosa is expected to be one of the state champion favorites along with Lamar, a region rival and second place finisher in 2013.

Frontier Academy, the defending state champions, graduated its top three boys, but have a strong enough program to put them in the team race again.

Salida’s Taylor Stock, the top 3A returner after a second-place finish as a sophomore, is expected to battle Basalt’s Zach Walsh, Alamosa’s De La Cerda and Ulibarri, and Lamar’s Jake Rogers for the individual crown.