CROSS COUNTRY: Birmingham graduate Del Toro wins season opener

Former Birmingham and Glendale College cross country standout Rosa Del Toro, a senior at Long Beach State, relied on an impressive surge in the final kilometer to win the 6-kilometer race at the Fullerton season-opening invitational Saturday at Carbon Canyon Park in Brea.

Del Toro, who moved up from 11th at the midway point of the race, won in 22 minutes, 3.7 seconds, just ahead of Glendale Community College sophomore Karen Rosas (22:08.5), making her return to cross country for the Vaqueros following 5,000- and 10,000-meter state track titles in the spring.

Loyola Marymount won the team competition with 39 points, followed by Long Beach State (61) and Glendale College (73).

Saugus graduate Nina Moore, a Long Beach State junior, also closed well in the final kilometer, edging Loyola Marymount's Caroline Draper (22:25.4) at the finish line to finish fourth (22:25.3).

Canyon alumna Alyssa Selve, a Glendale College sophomore, placed seventh in 22:44.0, with Saugus graduate Toccoa Kahovec rounding out the top 10 by clocking 23:03.1 for Cal Lutheran.

Cal State Northridge's Fany Alvarado, a Taft graduate, placed 14th (23:15.7), with Burroughs alumna Angie Martinez, a Glendale College sophomore, taking 15th (23:17.3). Hart graduate Grace Zamudio, a Glendale College freshman, was 24th (23:25.8) and Simi Valley alumna Amanda Miller was the No. 2 runner for 10th-place Cal Lutheran (295 points), clocking 24:20.7 to finish 53rd.

In the men's 8-kilometer race, Birmingham graduate Mizrael Mendez led Glendale by placing 13th in 25:58.7.

Long Beach State junior Jared Long, an El Camino Real graduate, was ninth (25:53.8) for the 49ers, who won with 25 points. Glendale took sixth with 136 points.

Santee graduate Jesus Gutierrez finished 23rd for the Vaqueros (26:21.1), followed by Saugus alumnus Alec Nelson in 33rd (26:40.9) and former Taft star Mario Castillo (26:52.0) in 46th.

Former Simi Valley standout Michael Vorgitch was 29th in his debut for Loyola Marymount (26:32.9).