Mile Split Network: Saugus girls No. 1 with a bullet

It took the Saugus girls' cross country team only one race to make its first significant move in the national rankings, vaulting from No. 3 to No. 1 in the Mile Split Network top 15.

"It's a nice honor, but I'd prefer not to be No. 1. I'd rather be No. 2," Saugus coach Rene Paragas said. "The reality is we haven't beaten Fayetteville-Manlius (N.Y.) and they should be No. 1 until someone does."

It marks the first time in program history the Centurions -- preseason No. 3 in Harrier Magazine's national rankings -- have received the honor of being the top-ranked team in the country by any source.

"When I found out, I was pretty dang excited," Saugus senior Anne Randall said. "We want to be the best team out there and (the recognition) just pushes that much harder. That's why we're up at 5:30 on a Saturday morning doing cruise intervals."

Following its course-record performance Friday at the Seaside Invitational in Ventura, Saugus surged past two-time national champion Fayetteville-Manlius, which dropped to No. 2. The Stotans don't compete in a major invitational in New York until Sept. 27.

"It's a pretty cool feeling, but we were all discussing it during our run (at Tuesday's practice) that we don't want to get too far ahead of ourselves," senior captain Keri Molt said. "We're not naming ourselves anything until we see them face to face and beat them head on."

Another New York power, Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, which opened its season Sept. 7 with a victory at the Niskayuna Ekiden meet, slipped to No. 3. Saugus, runner-up at last year's Nike Team Nationals, believed all along it should've been ranked ahead of the Spartans, who finished fifth last season in Portland, Ore.

Fayetteville-Manlius and Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake still occupy the top two spots in the Harrier Magazine rankings, which won't be updated until later this month.

No other California team is ranked in the Mile Split girls' top 15. The rest of the list includes:

4. Collins Hill (Ga.), 5. Saratoga Springs (N.Y.), 6. Mountain Brook (Ala.), 7. Fort Collins (Colo.), 8. Geneva (Ill.), 9. Lincoln-Sudbury (Mass.), 10. Queensbury (N.Y.), 11. Xavier College Prep (Ariz.), 12. Dowling Catholic (Iowa), 13. Midlothian (Va.), 14. Jesuit (Ore.), 15. Tatnall (Del.).