Who's No. 2? It could be Saugus too

Saugus might be ranked No. 3 in the country by Harrier Magazine and the Mile Split Network, but there is no debate as to which is the top girls' cross country team in California.

And after looking over the results from Friday's Seaside Invitational in Ventura, the Centurions might also be the No. 2 team as well.

Confused?

Kaylin Mahoney, Karis Frankian, Brianna Jauregui, Stephanie Bulder and Amber Murakami combined to run a team time of 87 minutes, 33 seconds on the 3-mile course at Sanbuenaventura State Beach, smashing last year's course record of 89:17.

According to meet officials, Trabuco Hills of Mission Viejo -- ranked No. 3 overall in the state by Dyestatcal.com -- was credited with the No. 2 team time of 91:47.

But upon further review, that honor belongs to Saugus as well.

Since only five runners contribute to a team time, the results of the Centurions' next five athletes could be counted as a new team time, Saugus "B" for argument sake.

Therefore, Danielle Hernando, Courtney Wilson, Keri Molt, Anne Randall and Nicole Penick would've combined to run 91:09, well ahead of Trabuco Hills, which was considered at the beginning of the season to be ranked just behind state No. 2 Dana Hills of Dana Point.

Even if the results posted by Hernando and Wilson were considered the Nos. 6 and 7 runners on the Saugus "A" team, if Katie Shirley and Amy Haukka were added to the "B" team in their place, the Centurions' mark would've changed to 92:56, still good for the No. 3 team time of the day at Seaside, ahead of Martin Luther King of Riverside (93:00).

So, if Saugus was allowed to run two teams at the Div. II state championship at Woodward Park in Fresno, could the Centurions finish first and second? That question will never be answered since CIF rules allow a school to enter only seven runners in the state final, but it would be interesting to see such a scenario unfold since Saugus' depth would be up to such a challenge.