Friends Are Small in Stature but Stand Tall for Irvine Cross-Country

Irvine cross-country runners Kelly Roda and Jennifer Gillis are alike in many ways. Each is quick to giggle or laugh. Roda, a sophomore, is 5 feet 1, 101 pounds. Gillis, a freshman, is the same height but weighs a pound less.

They are the cornerstones of the Irvine girls’ team, which is ranked fourth among Southern Section Division I schools.

Roda and Gillis have been friends since they were halfbacks on the same Orange County club soccer team four years ago.

“You meet everyone on the team,” Roda said. “And since we were the same height, we kind of related to each other.

“The halfbacks were also split up on offense and defense, and so I always ended up playing with her.”

Now, Roda and Gillis are team leaders at Irvine despite being underclassmen.

“We’re the loudest people on the team,” Roda said.

Irvine Coach Randy Rossi, who has guided the Vaqueros to the section finals six times, agreed.

“They are always involved,” Rossi said. “They’ll sing songs together and lead cheers, and I would say they like to speak up, but everybody kind of chimes in after they start.”

Roda, the top runner at Irvine last season, said she benefited when Gillis joined the team.

“Last year by myself, I was real stressed out, because I felt like I always had to get first, and it was too weird to be a freshman and be first,” Roda said. “There was no one up there to guide me.

“This year took the pressure off me because I knew if I didn’t win, Jennifer would.”

Roda and Gillis have taken turns beating each other. Gillis won four of the five South Coast League dual meets, but Roda was ahead at the Orange County and Mt. San Antonio College invitationals. In the team sweepstakes race at Mt. SAC, which featured four of the state’s top five teams, Roda finished fifth in 18 minutes 38 seconds on the same three-mile course that will be the site of Saturday’s section preliminaries. Gillis finished seventh in 18:44.

“They have benefited from the opportunity to be able to run together,” Rossi said. “They support each other and push each other.”

Gillis, who ran 1,500 meters in 4:50 last year, has more experience; she started running in age-group events when she was nine. Roda began in the seventh grade.

Both girls have set team goals for this season. They include helping Irvine advance to the section finals Nov. 17, and then to the state meet Nov. 24.

“They are great athletes--a lot of fun to work with,” Rossi said. “They are both interested in the welfare of the team.”

If Irvine wins the Division I championship and qualifies for state, Rossi has a reward planned: He will let his athletes shave off his mustache and trim his hair. He has had the mustache since 1973.

“If they qualify for state, I have promised them they can give me a buzz,” he said.

Said Gillis: “We can shave his head, but we can’t shave it all off.”

Roda said she has something else in mind:

“I want to shave it all.”

SOUTHERN SECTION PLAYOFFS: GIRLS’ CROSS-COUNTRY

Defending Champions--4-A: Palos Verdes; 3-A: Alta Loma; 2-A: Agoura; 1-A: Maranatha.

Top Teams--Division I: Irvine, Dana Hills. Division II: Edison, Canyon. Division III: Corona del Mar, Foothill. Division VI: Orange Lutheran.

Dark Horse: Division III: Santa Margarita.

Key Runners: Edison’s Shelley Taylor might have the most talent in the county; Katella’s Martha Pinto is a four-time Orange County champion; Woodbridge’s Kay Nekota is a former age-group competitor and big surprise this season as a freshman; Valencia’s Heather Killeen overcame medical problems; University’s Tanja Brix is hampered by injuries.

Noteworthy: Taylor and Pinto, who have raced against each other twice this season, will run in separate heats in Division II. Nekota ran 18:43 on the Mt. San Antonio College course Oct. 20 but last week ran 16:58 to defeat Brix (17:02) at the the Sea View League final at Irvine Park. Orange Lutheran, ranked fourth in Division IV, is led by sophomore Amber Parkinson, who ran 19:59 at Mt. SAC.