Coach Nate or Mr. Bershtel, was the previous girls cross country. Behind the scene is a father and husband who appreciates his family. He has recently given up his job as coach for the girls cross country and long distance track due to him choosing to be more family involved and increase his time investing in teaching.
He is currently teaching a Pre-Calculus class and also taught other math subjects, such as, Algebra 2 and Intermediate Math. He has made an impact both in the classroom, and on the field.
Many of his students and athletes appreciated him for his dedication and efforts he put into his job. One of his athletes, Ashley a senior who ran for him her 9th grade year to her 11th grade year said, “Coach Nate was a passionate and great coach and it is sad to see his leave the cross country family.” Her and many others felt this way because he was an amazing coach and teacher here at Long Beach Poly.
In addition, he coached an alumni, Brenda, who acknowledged, “Coach Nate always pushed me and encouraged me to run…if it weren’t for him I would not be running today.”
Coach Nate will now be replaced with Coach Gabrielle Bournes. She received her confirmation two weeks ago from the head of girls sports administration, Crystal Irving. Coach Gabby has been working with Long Beach Poly as an assistant coach for the mid-distance team for Track and Field.
Coach Nate’s decision to resign as a coach was good because he wants to be a great father to his kids and invest more time in his family.
He personally said, “ He does wish the program good luck and want the Poly cross country to continue the tradition and go far. This year the cross country team was able to compete in the season with an assistant coach from track and field and dominated in Moore League.
Tag: cross country
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Cross Country Gets a New Coach
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People’s Champ William Frankenfeld
CIF-Southern Sectional Championships took place on November 17th. Our very own CIC senior, Will Frankenfeld took first place and third in CIF State Championships on November 24th, just seconds away from first. Will also took another victory at the Foot Locker Cross Country West Regionals, placing second.
“I’m not gonna lie, I was a little disappointed that I finished third in state and I finished first in the Southern Section, which is the fastest section. So I should’ve got first in state, so of course I’m a little disappointed,” said Frankenfeld on his thoughts about the race.
“I do feel a certain pressures to do well, since I have done so well in the past,” said Frankenfeld on the expectations he feels from others.
“I plan to continue running in college, maybe for UCLA or Cal State Fullerton,” said Frankenfeld on his future aspirations on running.
Will Frankenfeld came 14th overall in the nation, third in State, and California’s top runner. -
Boys Xc Moore League at El Dorado Park
On Wednesday, September 26, cross country boys competed in their first Moore League race against Wilson, Millikan, Cabrillo, and Lakewood.
Three divisions raced at the El Dorado Park consisting of varsity, junior varsity, and freshman/sophomore. The race course was made up of flat ground, with two one-and-a-half-mile loops to complete the three mile course. Starting with the varsity boys, a never before seen five man pack (consisting of Bautista, Daniel, Alexander Matos, Ronan McMahon, Zane Whittier, and Christopher Yontz) lead the way to the finish line with an average 15:48 finishing time.
The remaining varsity runners (Aldo Khiev and Devin Koval) tagging along with an average 16:10 finishing time. As the dust settled, varsity boys had crushed the competition, winning first place.
Junior Varsity as well won first in their division, with the top seven runners (Ezequiel Barraza, Travis Bryson, Ethan Dwinell, Clark Boyce, Andrew Huerta, Marcello Murillo, and Adam Traut) averaging a finishing time of 16:27.
To end it off with a bang, freshmen/sophomore competitors cut the race close, but pulled ahead with the top seven runners (Nicholas Mejia, Nathan Jimenez, Daniel Garcia, Dominic Bakly, Adan Garcia, Jay Kumar, Pablo Lopez, Adrian Scancich) averaging a 17:40 finishing time.
Poly’s own cross country boys team won all three divisions and are gearing up for the rest of the Moore League races as well as a number of invitationals, with the varsity traveling to Portland and Santa Barbara.
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Cross Country: The Last Ride
On November 1, a number of Poly seniors run the last cross country race of their high school career. Many of these seniors are looking forward to Moore League finals and are hoping to achieve their personal goals of improving with faster finishing times.
When asked how the cross country team prepares for the race, senior Brian Espinoza said, “We train really hard to get where we want to be and would like to achieve…being fully committed is a number one priority to achieving our goal.”
Senior Leslie Diaz said she likes to stay hydrated and keep a positive attitude before she races. Diaz also stated that one of her personal goals is to be patient during the race and try to enjoy the race as much as she can.
One of the highlights from this season, explained senior Lanae Caldwell, is having the opportunity to run in the Mount Sac race.
“Thinking of all the other amazing athletes that have ran this race before me, made me proud to have ran this race,” Caldwell said.
Senior Nate Cooper said his goal for the race is to achieve his best time for this season.
“I am excited to see all the hard work we’ve put in over the past few years,” Cooper said.
It is obvious that these student athletes put in a lot of work, time and dedication into their sport and academics. In the end, their hard work should pay off and hopefully they will feel content with their achievements.
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Cross Country: Woodbridge Invitational
The girls cross country team made a strong showing at the Woodbridge Invitational at Estancia High School last Saturday. The Lady Jackrabbits finished fifth in the rated race and 19th out of 236 teams.
Freshman Melissa Tanaka ran 17:39 to finish tenth set a record for the fastest time by a Poly runner at Woodbridge. Freshman Lauren Fillipow ran 17:56 to finish in 20th, and freshman Olivia Gleason ran 18:09 to finish in 33rd. However, the entire team ran fast, setting a team time record of 90:56. Even with the addition of younger runners, Coach Nate Bershtel is confident in the team’s running maturity.
“All of the girls have around the same years of running experience. Instead of being the number four runner each race, they have the opportunity to be the number one runner at any given time,” said Coach Bershtel.
The boys cross country team also made a strong showing at the Woodbridge Invitational. The jackrabbits finished 10th in the Sweepstakes race and 14th out of 237 teams. Freshman Colby Penn ran 15:00 to finish in 39th place, senior captain Zach Ponce ran 15:08 to finish in 55th place, and senior Christian “CVaq” Vazquez ran 15:23 to finish in 81st place.
Coach Mike Fillipow was impressed with the depth the team displayed at Woodbridge. The top eight runners were within 35 seconds of each other at Woodbridge.
“Last year, we had some problems with the large gap between our number four and number five runners. This year, we have a great pack,” said Coach Fillipow.
Senior Christian Vazquez was content with the team’s performance, but insists there is still work to be done. “All in all, we made a good showing, and we can do even better. We’re going to stay consistent in our training, to give the fans a good showing,” said Vazquez. The boys will race in Moore League next Wednesday at El Dorado Park.
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Cross Country: Bun Run for Funds
Poly’s boys and girls cross country teams held their 21st annual Bun Run Fundraiser last Saturday at Los Cerritos Park.
It is the only fundraiser for the boys and girls cross country teams for the entire year and helps to raise money for races, team trips, and banquets.
The event has evolved into a great social and athletic gathering both Poly families and the community. Roughly 600 people attended the event, 300 of which participated in the community race.
“The course’s terrain has changed over the years, but I love it because it brings back a lot of memories,” said Principal Joe Carlson. Such memories include when Poly alumnus Ethan Durham took a wrong turn and continued running down the Pacific Coast Highway.
Principal Carlson was the girls cross country coach during the first Bun Run in 1992 and has seen the event and the teams evolve and expand over the years.
“It’s encouraging to see the Bun Run grow in support each year and to know that when we leave, it will continue to surpass expectation,” said four-year runner and senior Samantha Singal.
When the first Bun Run was held at Recreation Park in Long Beach, there were only nine girls on the Poly cross country team and no community race was run.
The cinnamon buns that were once given out to the runners and from which the event originally got its name have since been replaced by a parent-made pancake breakfast and a raffle that both the runners and the community enjoy after all the races have been run.
“From a senior’s perspective, I could see that the freshman were a little jittery, but having the whole cross country family plus the community to support them, they were able to enjoy themselves and not worry too much about the times they ran,” said senior captain Kassey Garduque.