2008 Girls cross country athlete of the year: Alex Dunne

The talent has been there since San Clemente senior Alex Dunne first competed for the Tritons four years ago.

In her first three seasons, Dunne showed vast improvement in her running and quickly earned distinction as one of the county's elite runners.

Yet the 2008 cross country season would see Dunne mix her talent and ability with confidence, determination and hard work, making her the county's top runner and one of the most accomplished in county history.

For her efforts, Dunne has been selected at the Register's 2008 Girls Cross Country Athlete of the Year.

Despite entering the season as a heavy favorite to be one of the state's top runners, Dunne says she didn't let the lofty expectations affect her performance.

"I never felt that I had any pressure on me this season," Dunne said. "I felt that I could perform the way that I wanted to and my base training was there to back me up."

Possessing the speed to finish races strong, Dunne focused her summer training on hill training and endurance. She competed for the United States in the junior race of the World Mountain Running Trophy in Switzerland, finishing third on a nearly three-mile course with a 1,030-foot increase in elevation.

That experience helped validate Dunne's belief in her abilities as her senior season loomed on the horizon.

"In previous years, I wasn't as confident in my training," Dunne said. "But coming into this season, my training went really well and I was consistent with it, so I had that confidence going into the season."

After a second-place finish at the Woodbridge Invitational, her first race of the year for the Tritons, Dunne impressively claimed titles at the Dana Hills Invitational and the Clovis Invitational, posting the fastest time in both meets.

Yet it was her efforts at the 42nd annual Orange County Championships that stood out to her, as she won in 16:42, the second best time recorded on the Irvine Regional course. (Former Woodbridge star Christine Babcock holds the record, 16:36 set in 2006.)

"I felt so good after running that race and I was shocked that I had come so close to the record," she said. "That was a big steppingstone for me."

Her standout efforts continued as the season reached CIF competitions. She became the only runner (boy or girl) to win four consecutive South Coast League titles, breaking her own meet record by more than 24 seconds. Later, she claimed the CIF Southern Section Division I title.

Dunne's determination to win was never more evident than at the CIF Division I state finals. Midway through the race, another runner inadvertently stepped on the back of her shoe. After trying to get the shoe back on her foot, she realized the futile effort was slowing her down and she kicked the shoe completely off of her foot.

"It did freak me out a bit, but then I realized that I just had to embrace the situation," Dunne said. "It didn't feel too good, but it did keep my mind off of the competition, which was nice."

Despite running the last 1? miles without one of her shoes, Dunne won the race by 14 seconds. She also helped lead the Tritons to a third-place team finish, the best in school history.

Dunne credited the other talented runners in the county for helping her accomplish all that she did this season.

"It's always nice to have runners to help push you to new levels," she said.

Contact the writer: jeichelberger@ocregister.com